


What is Home?

by zacizach



Series: Iris [1]
Category: Hermitcraft RPF
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Friendhsip everywhere, Gen, I cannot stress this enough, M/M, OOC, Respawn Mechanics, didnt think id have to put this as a tag but yea, dysfunctional family but they make it work, ey guess what this fanfic has an ask blog, haha stress get it?, i was sleep deprived while making this ngl, implications of having a bad timeTM, like thats the only reason why this fic exists, lots of magic fiction, no beta we die like docm77 by that one trap, nothing else, oh yea minecraft personas only, original child character - Freeform, season 6 hermitcraft, set during the area 77 arc actually, slight science fiction, switching povs like a god damn dj booth, temporary deaths, this fic is just an excuse for them to interact with a child, throwing headcanons left and right i have no idea what im doing, uh slight mentions of torture and bad stuff, world building, xisuma needs a nap hes one tired admin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:00:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 123,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23196706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zacizach/pseuds/zacizach
Summary: The Hermits thought the server's slightly malfunctioned night cycles were already weird enough.Enter a child that came out of nowhere.ORWhile Xisuma nearly kills himself trying to find out what is happening to the server, the others attempt to care for the new addition with what they know. Turns out, having a community that mostly consists of builders and redstoners isn't quite ideal in making sure the young one doesn't die.ORSeriously, they're trying their best.
Relationships: Everyone & A child, Everyone & Friendship, Grian/Rendog/Docm77 (not as important and so minor you have to squint a bit), Joe Hills/ZombieCleo (minor), Stressmonster101/Iskall85 (minor), Xisuma & A Nap
Series: Iris [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1718122
Comments: 462
Kudos: 530





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hi it was 3 am when i wrote this and it was collecting dust in my folders so thus i shall share it
> 
> oh god this is gonna be bad
> 
> also me? forgetting which floor was which in grian's base? more likely than you think
> 
> seriously guys i have no idea what im doing

  
Everyone was busy.

It's not really a surprise since, well, all of them are either masters in building amazing structures of everything and anything, or in the redstone contraptions that made their lives much more easier in complicated ways. And while they do have the skills in such high mastery level, they still need the time to make those said structures or contraptions. Not to mention grind for those materials...

So yes, everyone is always busy doing their own chores and projects. 

Everyone except for a few.

"Beautiful sunset, isn't?" Grian asked, perched on top of one of the pillars of his futuristic tower, legs dangling off the edges as he idly swing them about. He was facing west, watching the yellow sun slowly set down over the vast ocean, painting the sky in a gradient of orange, purple and dark blue. 

Mumbo, Impulse and Stress were with him, sitting along the edges with their eyes focused on the setting sun with a hazy look. 

"It is gorgeous." Stress agreed, shivering slightly when a breeze washed past all of them. She hugged the pink jacket closer to her body. Despite living in an ice biome and even calling herself the 'Ice Queen', Stress doesn't seem to be used to the occassional breeze the futuristic district provided. "When was the last time we enjoyed the sunset?"

"Pretty sure it was 'never'." Impulse laughed out loud. "Especially not when the server first started. We were pretty busy grinding all those materials to make our bases, after all."

Mumbo sighed sadly. "Shame, I wish we could have times like these. Enjoying the sunset after a hard day's work surrounded by good people... But with the server acting absolutely bonkers it's difficult." 

They all silently agreed. In fact, the other three weren't really supposed to be in Grian's base, especially around this time. 

No one really noticed the problem, but about a month ago the night cycles in the server were acting... weird. Sometimes, the night would only last for about an hour before the sun begins to rise, other times it would do a full 24 hour. Xisuma managed to fix some parts of it so that the nights don't last that long, but occasionally there would be an extra hour or so. 

Though that's not quite the main issue. The real problem was the mobs themselves. The rate of mobs spawning during the night had substantially increased, and the attacks began to cause more damage and harm to the Hermits. They began to be more aggressive and more intellectual... most skeletons and zombies were starting to wear armor as a normal thing, and the blast radius of a creeper had widened. Spiders started spawning in groups and- well, it's basically just causing trouble everywhere in the server.

The only way to counter this was to make sure the areas they were in were well-lit and to stay in their bases during the night. It seemed to be working extremely well for no one had died in the hands of a mob yet. 

Grian glanced at his companions, noticing their sad looks as the sun finally disappeared. Feeling the heavy atmosphere around them, Grian stretched his limbs, letting out an exaggerated groan that caught their attention.

"Well, I think it's time for us to go inside. You three don't mind having a sleepover, yea?"

"As long as you boys keep your hands to yourself."

All three feigned offense at Stress' words. 

"How rude of you to imply such disgraceful things! We are gentleman!" Grian cried, a hand over his heart before bursting out laughing. The other three quickly followed. 

The faint sound of phantoms cut their happy moment short. With a slight sense of urgency, Grian stepped off the pillar backward, letting gravity pull his body down. In this position, he could see Impulse and Stress jumping off, with Mumbo following close behind a moment later. Letting out a whoop of joy as the air rushed past his ears, Grian did a quick turn and opened his elytra- the wings catching him and allowing him to prevent crashing onto the smooth surface of the roof. 

He quickly flew down to the lower section of his tower, easily flying through the open gate before using a rocket to pull himself upwards to the large hole in the middle of the room. He ended up on the floor where the large machine intended on taking Mumbo's mustache away was stored at one side. Considering the fact that this floor is much more emptier and spacious than the mess below, he would have to host their sleepover session here with a mustache watching over them. 

After a few more seconds, Impulse and Stress appeared through the hole. While Stress not so gracefully landed on her bottom, the elytra failing her in the last second, Impulse did a quick glide around the floor before settling down on his two feet in front of the two.

"Where's Mumbo?" Grian asked, helping Stress up. 

A loud shout, a few boxes dropping on the floor and even more shouts answered Grian's question. They didn't have to look down through the hole to know that Mumbo is still not used to flying through Grian's base despite being one of the usual visitors. Eventually, Mumbo had finally flew through the hole, but had apparently used his rockets too much to the point he smacked his face right on the ceiling. 

Stress made some kind of pained noise while Grian laughed his ass off. Impulse had also laughed, but let out a concerned yelp as he flew up to catch Mumbo's falling figure mid-air. 

"M' okay!" Mumbo said, touching his face and wincing once he's on the ground. "Ah... Do you guys happen to have any healing potions?"

None of them do, but Grian jumped down to the lower floor to see if he has any potions stored in the mess he calls his storage. 

When Grian returned, he brought along a shulker box that contained all the essentials they need to have this 'sleep-over'. Which is really just a bunch of beds and a couple of slabs to make it seem like they are 'sleeping bags', but a lantern, carpets and some food items managed to give more purpose to their 'sleep-over'. 

Grian and Stress were busy decorating the area a bit to make it nicer. Mumbo, on the other hand, had to beg Impulse to stop saying that the mustache on the machine is better than the one he has. 

Within ten minutes, it was completed. The colors contrasted the white, blue and grey interior walls Grian's base had, but this was temporary anyway, so they didn't mind too much. 

"I wonder how X is doing." Impulse thought aloud, golden carrots being held in one hand as a snack. "Man's been working himself for a long time now."

Stress had stared at the cookies nicknamed 'Jangled' with slight annoyance, likely due to the fact that Doc and Ren had interrogated her that one time. Rolling her eyes, which was only noticed by Mumbo much to his confusion, she munched on the cookies. "I haven't seen him in a while... I hope he's at least taking a break every now and then."

"Pretty sure Ex-Zoo-Wee-Mama is gonna be just fine." Grian optimistically said, butchering Xisuma's name while doing so. "If he isn't taking breaks, then I'm sure Scar and Cub would force him to take one! Besides, I think Joe is looking after him right now, so I wouldn't be too worried."

"Well, with the night cycle going on like this, I would admit that it's starting to become quite... unsettling." 

With Mumbo's, reply, they all looked out at one of the large blue-tinted windows his tower has. The night had long taken over by now, littering the dark canvas with stars they could barely see. From their angle, its hard to see the moon. 

"Has the server experienced any bugs that lasted this long?" Grian genuinely asked. It was an expected question, since he himself is quite new to the server and to the whole 'Hermitcraft' lifestyle, unlike the others who had more than a year experience. 

Mumbo and Impulse, having been to the server since the second and third season respectively, began to go through their memories to answer Grian's question. Stress, on the other hand, answered Grian's question with what she knows. 

"Not that I know of, no. X has always been diligent with his job as an admin, making sure to fix any bugs or glitches within the server if there are any. At most it would take him a day or two and even then, X always seemed to knew exactly what those problems usually were."

"She's right about that part." Impulse agreed, having given up on going through memory lane. "Something to do with how admins work and how their knowledge gets passed on or something, but as far as I'm aware, no other bug had lasted this long."

Mumbo had a thoughtful look on his face. "I mean... Sure, there weren't any bugs that lasted this long, but I do admit there have been many instances where the server had acted... weird." 

The two redstoners shared an uneasy look, a silent conversation happening between them. Having arrived in the server in the later seasons, Stress and Grian can only look at each other in wonder and confusion as to what exactly had happened in the previous worlds. However, that topic was no longer continued. Instead, they started having an idle conversation until they couldn't keep their eyes open anymore. 

The pink-jacket hermit had yawned loudly at some point, finally declaring that she was gonna shut in for the night. Not long after that did Mumbo soon decide to sleep. Grian and Impulse had stayed up a little bit more, but had finally succumbed to the same fate as their other friends. So for the rest of the night, the four hermits slept without any sign of waking up soon. 

And it would have been the case, too, if the server can just give these hermits a damn break.

* * *

Rain had pattered onto the windows during the night. The loud sound had actually woken Mumbo up from his blissful sleep, irritation coursing through his body. Eventually, he did manage to fall back to sleep, only to lurch forward when loud thunderstorms rocked the towers, the sight of lightning disappearing almost immediately.

Grian had woken up groggily, but became more conscious when the thunderstorms roared once more. Stress was shaking from where she laid, curled tightly into a blanket. Impulse had a visible look of fear when the thunder and lightning continues. 

"I don't suppose that's part of the night cycle bug, right?" Mumbo cautiously asked, rubbing Stress' shoulders as a way to comfort her seeing as he was the nearest to her. They all jumped when all their communicators went off at once.

**< GoodTimesWithScar> is everyone okay?**  
**< FalseSymmetry> Got shook, is all. the rain is getting stronger by the minute though**  
**< Iskall85> currently camping in the shopping district. tango dont get mad**  
**< TangoTek> did the lightning hit my rocket shop???**  
**< Iskall85> yes**  
**< Docm77> hermitville is actually pretty stable**  
**< Renthedog>yep. only rain here, but we felt the thunder**  
**< Renthedog> NVMNVMNVM IT GOT WORSE THERES LIGHTNING EVERYWHERE**

  
Impulse and Grian shared a worried look. "This doesn't look so good," Grian stated, glancing at Stress to see her being calmed down by Mumbo.

**< ZombieCle> Hold on is everyone okay??? Where r you guys? im in my base rn**  
**< Grian> impulse, mumbo and stress r with me in my base**  
**< Renthedog> doc and python are with me in hermitville**  
**< Iskall85> shopping district and im alone**  
**< TangoTek> im with jevin and false in jevin's place**  
**< TinFoilChef> Im in my base**  
**< GoodTimesWithScar> Cub and i are hiding out in concorp**  
**< joehillssays> im with xisuma in his base. he's trying to figure out what the problem is**  
**< Grian> Any luck?**  
**< joehillssays> unfortunately, no. im currently trying to get him to eat something**  
**< ImpulseSV> Keralis? Bd? Wels? you guys good?**  
**< Keralis> Sorry, yea. bd and i had to flee to the nether. our entire area are full of mobs**  
**< Welsknight> still here in base. zedaph is with me, actually**

Mumbo, having his communicator out and was sharing it with Stress, let out a relieved sigh. "Alright, that's all of us accounted for. I don't think this thunder is gonna let off any-"

A loud menacing crack in the sky cut Mumbo off. It seemed as if the thunderstorms are only getting worse as time goes on. 

"-yyy oh my word... Stress? Not to make fun of your name but-"

"YES! I AM STRESSED!" 

The communicator beeped once more. Impulse saw it first.

**< Renthedog> Guys, come to hermitville. you need to see something**  
**< ImpulseSV> see what? are you guys okay?**  
**< Docm77> we're fine. thunderstorm just got worse though**  
**< Docm77> something happened. lots of lightning struck down outside the perimeter**  
**< TangoTek> are you sure you're okay???**  
**< Renthedog> yes but when the lightning struck... it left purple flames**  
**< ZombieCleo> Purple flames?? is that even possible???**  
**< Renthedog> apprently so but thats not the weirdest part. its making some kind of path**  
**< PythonGB> hes right. im on the nether portal tower and i can see the long trail**  
**< PythonGB> its not getting extinguished by the rain**

  
"We have to check it out." Grian declared once he saw the messages. 

Mumbo had let out a loud sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose with his two fingers because of course Grian would want to go find out what was happening in Hermitville despite how dangerous it was. Impulse and Stress had almost the same 'god-dammit-Grian-why-am-I-not-surprised?' look.

Though in Grian's defense, the others would've gone to Hermitville anyway.

* * *

"Hey, man!" Ren waved happily when Grian and the others popped out from the nether portal. Despite his cheerful greeting, it didn't hide the heavy storm happening from behind him. They all visibly flinched when lightnight cracked through the dark sky.

"Hey, Ren. Are the others here?" Impulse asked as they all jumped down from the tower, letting their elytras glide them down to safety. Despite the many structures and shelters built within the perimeter of the village, none of the Hermits that came didn't seem to bother trying to protect themselves from the rain. In fact, they all huddled in a group by the tower that housed the nether portal. 

Doc was leaning against the tower, his expression unreadable. Python was beside him, though now wearing a slightly-oversized hoodie that covered his head which showed that out of everyone, he was the most bothered by the heavy rain.

A couple of others were there as well. Keralis and Bdub had arrived and were talking amongst themselves, Cleo was there fiddling with the handle of her sword and Iskall was now walking over to the new arrivals, a look of relief on his face.

"Thank goodness you guys are alright. It was crazy in the shopping district." Iskall pulled both Grian and Mumbo into a hug, which the other two obliged. "I nearly got strike a couple of times but there was absolutely no way I'm gonna stay in there any longer!"

"Good thing you got out while you still can, then." Keralis frowned, the communicator in his hand. 

**< iJevin> sorry guys, we cant leave. we're kind of stuck rn. thunderstorm is getting worse**  
**< GoodTimesWithScar> same here, with the addition of mobs too**  
**< TangoTek> ah geez, take care of yourselves**  
**< GoodTimesWithScar> same to you, my friend**

The sound of the nether portal warping can be heard despite the rain. Looking up, the hermits saw Joe and Xisuma drop down from the ledge. Doc and Grian reached out when Xisuma nearly collapsed on his knees once his feet touched the ground.

"I'm- I'm fine." Xisuma said, though not resisting his friends helping him stand. Grian made an audible noise of concern when he saw how tired Xisuma looked through the purple visor. With how deep his eyebags were, it almost seemed as if their favorite admin hadn't been sleeping properly for the past month or so. 

The state of their admin made everyone feel guilty for not checking up on him as much.

Thankfully, Joe had been the one to regularly visit Xisuma throughout the month, which everyone was grateful for. 

"The fire trailed through Area 77 but went waaaaay beyond that." Ren explained to the hermits. "Doc and I actually went ahead to check on the fire- which, by the way, won't extinguished. Also hurts like hell."

"Who's idea was it to put their hand into the fire?" Doc asked with a roll on his eyes, still keeping a steady hand on Xisuma's back. "Sorry man, looks like you have to stay here."

"I already said I'm-" 

"Nope! Not hearing it, Ex-Oh-Zooo-Ma!" Grian interrupted, a wide smile on his face which failed to mask his worries. "You are in no condition to go out into the thunderstorm- not to mention protect yourself from the mobs!  
  
Xisuma was about to protest but seeing how he was basically against everyone present, he sighed and gave in. "Alright, alright... But I'll still be working on how to fix the bugs. If anything happens, message me and I'll teleport to you." 

Satisfied that they had made a compromise, all of the hermits started their preparation in traversing through the dangerous trail of fire. In the rain, no less, though they didn't seem to mind at all. 

Python, having some kind of dislike towards the rain, had decided to stick by Joe and Xisuma in Hermitville. By that point everyone had finished preparing for the dangerous journey ahead of them- practically covered in god armour and stacked to the brim with tools and shulker boxes full of supplies and potions. Seeing the constant lightning strikes made the hermits change out of their elytras and to their diamond chestplates- even Doc and Grian, who had no problems flying in such weather, opted out of their elytras for something that gave more protection. 

"Are we good to go, fellas?" Iskall asked everyone. A chorus of replies were heard. 

With everyone prepared, they wasted no more time and left the safety of the village, catching sight of the large blazing fire in the deep purple color, reminding them of the end. The fire lead to a trail, like what Ren had said earlier. 

Iskall and Grian shared a worried look when they realized that the trail also happens to have mobs in every direction. Looks like they're gonna need more than just their god armour to survive this.

* * *

Xisuma coughed, irritating his throat in the process. He felt a figure walk up to him and the shape of a glass appear in front of his vision. Blinking the blurriness away, Xisuma mumbled a thank you to Python, who nodded. 

He took his helmet off and immediately drank all the water in the glass, before putting it back on. 

Rain pattered onto the windows, lightning continued to crack... it was distracting Xisuma from his work but he can't let it stop him. The multiple screens with never-ending texts of coding and numbers nearly made his head buzz and he wondered if he had accidentally misread something or maybe skipped over an important detail or even accidentally typed in the wrong command-

He didn't realize his shoulders were shaking until he felt a hand rest upon it. Taking a look, he found out the hand belonged to a worried-looking Joe. Xisuma sighed and attempted to calm himself down. 

"X, you really need a break." Joe softly said. The softness of his long-time friend's voice nearly made Xisuma burst into tears, but he held it in. He had to be strong for the hermits- he knows they said that he can take a break but if a bug- heck, it may not even be a bug, but something more serious, had lasted this long in the server, then he has to fix it. 

Xisuma already had a few close-calls when his brother came into the picture, he does not want a repeat of that in this server. 

He does not want a repeat of watching everything get blown up and be deleted by the hands of someone he can't fight back. He won't let his friends go through the same pain again.

"X?"

"In a minute." Xisuma's reply caused the hand on his shoulder to be dropped. He couldn't tell what Joe was feeling, but all he cares about right now is finding the damn problem and fix it before anyone else dies.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pt 2 of the chp i wrote sleep deprived

"You know, I kind of wished I was with Tango and get stuck with him in Jevin's base!"

"Oh, stop complaining!" 

Stress rolled her eyes, which Impulse clearly saw. He only let out a cheeky grin but yelped when an arrow whizzed by him. Luckily, a trident flew over to his head and strike his attacker straight on the chest, instantly killing it. 

"Thanks, Doc!" Impulse gave him a thumbs up, of which Doc replied with a nod as he collected back the flying trident with his metal hand. Though the moment he gripped onto the long trident, he heard a hiss behind him. 

The creeper exploded, launching Doc through the air. Many of the hermits cried out his name upon seeing him land on the ground painfully.

Grian and Iskall, being the nearest, rushed to his side. "Doc! Oh no- are you okay?!" 

Doc grunted as he was helped up to his feet. The creeper had definitely did a number on him, but seeing as he had chugged on a regeneration power a minute prior, he could already feel his health being brought back up to it's highest. "I'm fine, but we really have to pick up the pace."

"Hey! I see a cave!" 

Ren's callout caught everyone's attention. With Keralis and Bdubs fending off the remaining zombies near them, the rest ran over to where Ren was. Sure enough, where they stand on a small hill, they could see a cave that came from one of the mountains. The purple flames had made their trail all the way to the mouth of the cave, which they assumed was where the lightning couldn't continue. Though they didn't need any more lightning strikes, they have found their target. 

"Come on, guys! We're so close!" Cleo managed to snap everyone out of their trance at seeing the cave. With adrenaline still coursing through their veins from fighting so many mobs, they have arrived at the entrance of the cave. 

Keralis and Bdubs finally came back to the group as Doc and Iskall inspected the cave with their mechanical eyes. It was completely pitch-black inside, and even if they placed torches around, it wouldn't be enough to brighten the whole cave. Grian, who was beside Iskall, visibly shuddered the moment he heard various mob sounds echoing inside. 

"This looks like a suicide mission, honestly," Iskall commented, finding the sounds unsettling. "Perhaps not all of us should go?" 

"Good idea, actually. Wouldn't be worth it if all of us die in this cave with no one to collect our stuff." Doc agreed. He tapped on his left temple, where the metal part is. His red eye lit up the place momentarily and started scanning the cave from where he was. "Looks like an average cave but who knows what kind of weird stuff happened." 

"I'd be surprised if anything weirder happened tonight. This night cycle is already screwing our admin up." Impulse sighed, a hand on his hip. "There's ten of us here, so half-half and hope for the best?

"Very funny, Impulse. Bubbles and I are gonna keep guard at the entrance." Keralis said, pulling out his sword in a ready like pose. Bdubs nodded along, despite the uneasy look on his face. 

Cleo had also said that she would be helping the duo keep guard. No one made objections. Impulse, as a slight apology, also decided to keep a look-out in the entrance. It took some convincing by the Architects but Iskall decided to stay near the entrance. This then leaves Doc, Grian, Mumbo, Ren and Stress to search the cave.

The torches practically did nothing to help light up the area, which they thankfully don't need much of since they can just use Doc's tracking device to know where they are. Still, with their diamond armour and tools- not to mention they are all skilled in combat, it still doesn't make the unsettling feeling go away. Stress was practically glued to Mumbo's side, who was providing her comfort via whispers of support or gently rubbing her shoulders. Grian was at her other side, his sword out in case of any danger. 

Doc and Ren were ahead of them by at least one block- Doc with his mechanical eye being able to see through the dark, and Ren providing his own light via the lamp to ensure the hermits don't get lost.

It felt like an eternity traversing through the wide cave with no end in sight. Mumbo had been keeping in check with the time, and by the time ten minutes had passed he finally said something about it. 

"I feel like we should tell X where we are now." 

The hermits stopped walking to look at him. Though out of everyone, Doc had some look of passive aggression in his green features which was not left unnoticed by anyone. 

"And give him more stress than usual? Yea, I rather not do that just yet, Mumbo. We're already here, might as well finish it." 

Grian not-so-subtly stood in front of Mumbo, facing towards Doc with his hands up to his chest-level, almost as if he was surrendering. "Oookay, Doc, relax. I know the situation is kind of... ehh not good, and I completely understand that you don't want to pile anymore stress onto our favorite admin. Frankly, I feel the same way, but you got to calm down, man. Letting out your frustrations on someone is just gonna dampen the atmosphere as it already is." 

It was rare that Grian would be the voice of reason but both Ren and Stress were thankful for it. Doc looked guilty for his rough treatment to Mumbo and was about to apologize. However, he was stopped by Mumbo's raised hand.

"It's alright, mate. Today has just been stressful for all of us." Mumbo said with a smile. Stress gave Mumbo's hand, which was still around her shoulder, a soft squeeze as a sign of support. 

"Let's just get this over with. I don't like this place at all." Stress said, which everyone agreed to.

Much to their surprise, another three minutes has passed when something peculiar happened.

Doc was leading the hermits due to his mechanical eye, so the moment his hand raised as a sign for the others to stop, everyone was suddenly tensed. Before they could understand the reasoning behind it, there was an indescribable sound that seemed to be whooshed by the air. A purple light suddenly flew right over their heads and back to where they came from.

"What the heck was that?!" Grian whisper-shouted, shocked and confused upon seeing the strange light. Doc had a finger pressed on his temple, a look of concentration on his face. 

"An unknown source, that's for sure," Doc replied uneasily, standing up. He must have taken some screenshots of the light before it had disappeared. 

"Well, at least it's telling us that we're closer to whatever it is!" Ren said, being optimistic about the entire situation as per usual. The group of five pressed on until one of their members accidentally stepped on something poisonous.

"AH!"

"Stress!"

Mumbo and Grian were by Stress's side the moment she had fallen forward. As Doc went over to her to inspect her injuries, Ren took a moment to look around his surroundings to notice black vines crawling across the cave floors and walls. 

"Shit, shit, shit..." Stress mumbled curses, her breathing heavy as she practically leaned all her weight to Mumbo. Doc had a look of visible shock when he saw purple blotches that appeared up to her ankles, despite the fact that the poison... fungi? Plant? Was stepped on the sole of her shoes. Just like that purple light, Doc did a quick scan and clicked his tongue in annoyance when he realized it also came from an unknown source. 

"I think I have some health and regeneration potions. Maybe even milk..." Grian said to himself, searching through his inventory for the shulker boxes full of potions. He found it and set it down, not taking too much time to pull out the potion of health and giving it to Mumbo, who graciously helped Stress swallow it down. 

"This isn't good..." 

"Doc? Will she be okay?" Mumbo asked. He placed his hand on her forehead before abruptly pulling it away. Bloody hell, she's burning up! 

"Side effects of poisoning is constant but the blotches... Shit... Stress needs immediate medical attention, now."

"I'll tell X to teleport Stress back to Hermitville," Mumbo said, pulling his communicator out. But as his hand left Stress' shoulders, the female hermit suddenly reached out, fingers gripping onto his wrist tightly. Her eyes were hazy and not looking at Mumbo properly, making the hermits worry more as to how serious her condition was. 

"Uh, change of plans. Mumbo, you're practically her anchor right now so I suggest you stick by Stress in the meantime." Grian suggested, pulling a few potions out before passing it to Mumbo. "I think Suma' and the others already have the potions they need, but just in case." 

Ren was busy typing into his communicator, most likely messaging Xisuma about the teleportation assistance. "Alright, X knows what's up, he should be teleporting you two back to Hermitville, safe and sound." 

Mumbo nodded, adjusting Stress who was practically laying over his lap. "Alright... Will you three be okay?"

Grian waved it off and Ren provided a thumbs up. Doc verbally answered with a reassuring smile. "Yea, we'll look after each other. Just make sure Stress gets treated- I know Joe has some good medical skills so he should be able to help." 

"As if I don't know that, I've been here since Season 2, my friend." 

"So have I, young one."

They chuckled over their small banter. With another round of reassurance from both sides, Doc, Ren, and Grian continued on, leaving Mumbo alone with Stress in the dark. 

He held her close, worries increasing gradually as Stress begins to mumble unintelligible words. He only hoped that she can be healed from the unknown poison before it gets too serious. 

So within the dark caves, two hermits disappeared, leaving behind no trace as they were sent back to Hermitville.

* * *

The black vines Ren had found earlier were... worryingly getting much larger than before. Doc had taken a couple of night-vision screenshots of it and had tried to scan it, though failing in the process. It would seem as if he had to take a sample of it and take it back to Area 77 for some testing, much to Ren and Grian's displeasure due to the fact they're part of the 'Hippie Commune'. 

Grian, as a way to distract himself from being worried about his friends, started singing. His voice wasn't the best, per se, but it certainly did brighten the mood a tiny bit as his voice echoed the walls. There weren't any words or rhyming this time for his brain was too occupied, but the tune he was singing was somehow catchy enough that Ren caught on and started to sing alongside him. Doc only rolled his eyes at them. 

Though as they continue to sing, Doc realized that the cave seemed to be getting a bit more... brighter. He let out a squeak of surprise when a glowing purple flower bloomed by the walls of the cave, followed by another, and another, until suddenly the walls were covered in the same plant, practically lighting up the whole area. 

"Whoa..." Ren gasped, entranced by its beauty as he inspected the flower closer. The purple petals were glowing, which provided the light. It was oddly the prettiest thing any of them has ever seen, though they all were too wary to try and touch it. 

"I don't suppose the flowers bloomed due to our pretty voices, right?" Grian asked in a slight-joking manner. Before any of them could reply, a voice began to echo within the walls. 

A female voice, almost like a child's. They were singing the same tune Grian was singing. 

They all glanced at each other, almost as if they were all thinking the same thing. They ran. 

They followed the vines and the purple flowers, jumping over thick ones or a suspicious-looking plant on the ground. Eventually, they stopped right at the mouth of a large opening. 

Vines upon vines surrounded the walls of the cave, though right smack at the center the vines were weaving together seamlessly as if making a nest. The purple glow of the flowers provided the light they needed to see a small figurine seated in the middle of the nest-like vines. 

Her voice, though not strong, echoed within the walls as she sang. Her back was facing towards them, so they were unable to see her features.

It was... actually beautiful. 

"Wow." Grian unconsciously said out-loud, which caused the girl to abruptly stop her singing. She whirled around, her grey eyes widening upon seeing three strangers. Almost immediately, she began to breathe heavily, and the vines around her began to move.

"Hey, hey! It's okay, we ain't goin' to hurt you!" Ren said, taking a cautious step forward. He only jumped back when a vine suddenly sprouted from the ground, almost like giving him a warning.

The girl frantically looked around, but seeing as there was no escape, she only curled on herself, the vines around her growing and weaving into one another, practically making a cocoon of safety to protect her from the intruders.

But the vines were making layers upon layers, overlapping one another to strengthen the cocoon. If the cocoon was finished before any of them could do anything-

"Shit, she's gonna suffocate herself!" Doc cried, taking a step back when he realized one of the vines was threatening to wrap around his ankle. 

Grian looked around the cave, trying to find anything of use before giving up. As a last-minute resort, Grian began singing. 

It was slightly off-tune as before, but nonetheless it was the same tune he was singing before the flowers bloomed. To everyone's surprise, even himself, the vines collectively stopped moving, and the girl had stopped crying. 

She peeked her head out from the mess of vines she had created, watching Grian with curious eyes as he continued to sing. Seeing as it was his chance, Grian slowly took a step towards her, carefully watching her reaction. She remained still. 

Becoming more confident, Grian began taking cautious steps towards her until he was right in front of her half-made cocoon, staring deep into her grey eyes. The girl, like much them minutes prior, was entranced with his singing for her eyes sparkled with curiosity and amazement.

Grian voice soon turned softer, until he stopped. The vines remained unmoving. 

"Hello, there." Grian softly greeted with a smile. "What's your name?" 

The girl blinked, tipping her head to the side in confusion. 

Seeing as it was safe, Ren and Doc appeared by Grian's side. With the addition of two new faces, the girl became slightly nervous and hid behind her half-made cocoon. Though with Doc's tall height, he could still see the top of her white hair from where he stood.

"I don't think she understands you, man." 

"You think?" 

"At least she doesn't see us as a threat anymore," Doc said, sighing as he ran his biological hand through his brown hair. "But... where did she come from?"

"Even better question, my dude, what are we gonna do with her?"

At that point the girl felt less shy to peek out from where she hid, now offering a finger out. Grian had resorted to playing with her, trying to poke her finger with his own. For every successful touch, the girl would let out a noise that almost resembled a child's delightful squeal before continuing the game, pulling her finger the last second before Grian could touch it.

"Honestly, I think it's best if we bring her with us. I was gonna suggest keeping her in Area 77 but I know the hermits wouldn't like that." Doc put his hands up in surrender when Grian and Ren gave him a dirty look. Damn Hippies. "See what I mean? Anyway, it's clear she has some connection with these vines and flowers and... Stress' poisoning, so I'm not gonna put her in the clear just yet."

"Kind of a dick move that you're talking about her when she doesn't even understand you," Grian said, unimpressed as he let the child poke his finger repeatedly. His gaze softened as he continues to play with the child. "I know that she may seem dangerous but... she's still a kid. She was probably so scared when she got here with no one to support her."

Ren finally gave his two-cents into the conversation. "How about we just go back and make a decision as a community? I'm pretty sure we can make some sort of compromise." 

Reluctantly, the other two hermits agreed. 

With some hand gestures and lots of miscommunication, Grian somehow managed to convince the child to leave her safety half-made cocoon and follow them. Much to their surprise, Grian also managed to grab hold of her hand like how a mother would hold her child to make sure they won't get lost. With her side-by-side with Grian, it was easy to see just how... small she was. 

With Doc's scanner, he found out she was eight years old. 

After a long trek through the caves, they have finally emerged from the exit. They noticed that the sun was actually rising and the rain had stopped. The purple flames that gave them the trial had also disappeared. The five watchers caught sight of their friends and rushed over to them. The girl hid behind Grian. 

"We saw the messages from Joe- are you guys alright?!" Cleo asked in a hurry. "Why did it take so long?"

"What happened to Stress? Joe said something about some poisoning-"

"The flames magically disappeared when the sun rose up- by the way, are you okay-?" 

The worried hermits started talking over one another. To Grian's dismay, he noticed the child looking not only uncomfortable but also panicky as the voices of his friends gradually grew louder and louder. 

"Guys! Calm down, we're fine." Ren shouted, ceasing the overlapping voices at once. "We, uh, found something. But you gotta promise not to freak out, okay?" 

With them nodding, Doc and Ren took a side step to reveal Grian who was behind the two. He lifted his right arm, revealing the form of the young girl who was still hiding behind him, though she was now curiously looking at them with wide eyes. 

None of them spoke for a minute, utterly stunned upon seeing a child hidden within the depths of the cave. 

"... So is she the one who made the night cycles all weird?" 

Cleo slapped Impulse on the shoulder. 

"OW! I'm not freaking out! I'm just asking?!" 

"Shut it."

Iskall kneeled in front of Grian and the girl, offering her a smile. "Hi there."

Grian nervously chuckled. "Uh... Unfortunately, she doesn't seem to understand English that much. Or doesn't seem to talk much in general." 

"But she can understand expressions, no?"

"Uhh... honestly, Iskall, I've only known her for half an hour so I'm not sure."

Iskall and the girl had a mini staring contest for about thirty seconds before Iskall decided to try something. He waved. 

The girl glanced down at her pale hand, flexing her fingers before copying exactly what Iskall did. A few hermits may or may not have squealed at the cute sight. 

"Alright, let's get back to Hermitville and figure out our next course of action." Everyone nodded to Doc's statement. As most people put on their elytras, they then remembered the slight problem they had when their local flyer didn't immediately put on his wings. 

"Is she afraid of heights?" Cleo asked worryingly.

"There's a lot of things we don't know about the kid," Doc explained. "It's... Well, it's clear that Grian seems to be the closest to her, it would be safer to take things slow for now. That means walking back." 

Everyone had skeptical looks on their faces at the thought of leaving Grian alone with the girl (yes, she is a kid but they did risk their lives investigating the purple flames, after all). Luckily, Ren spoke up, an arm wrapped around the shorter hermit's shoulder.

"Don't worry, guys. Ren-diggity-dog is gonna keep these two company! Besides we could also try finding more things about her while we walked- you don't know how easy it is to reveal your true self during a hike."

"Why? Got first-hand experience?" 

The hermits laughed, much to the young one's confusion. 

"Just to be safe I'll also stick by them. I may not be a certified doctor but there's a reason why I have 'Doc' as my name." Doc said (despite how out of context it was), glancing down at the child who was staring at him as he spoke. He realized that the girl was staring at him a bit too intensely, making him slightly self-conscious due to his biological creeper hybrid body. However, he then found out that the girl wasn't focused on his green skin- more so on his mechanical red eye. Doc found that interesting. 

Being reassured that they have one of the best trident users in the server, the others bid them a safe journey and took off into the skies, spamming way too many rockets than usual which left grey smoke particles at its wake. 

"Well, let's get going, gang!" Ren fisted the air and began walking, closely followed by Doc. 

"Let's not get left behind now. It's a long hike after all." Grian said looking down at the girl. She couldn't understand him- not like he was expecting her to, but she gripped his hand as a reply. 

Grian is _so_ gonna get attached to her and he's already accepted that fact.

* * *

Stress was able to sit upright by the time the other hermits came back via their elytras, though noticeably missing three of their members as most of them landed back into Hermitville. The group that stayed (and joined) in Hermitville was camping in Grian's ridiculously tall rustic house, though in the upper floors since Villager Grian had taken his spot downstairs. Stress was drinking some milk when she noticed them landing.

"They're back."

For the second time since they have arrived, Xisuma finally looked away from the screens, the bags under his eyes noticeably darker than before. Mumbo, who had stayed by her side the entire time, remained where he was sitting as the other three hermits ran down the stairs to check up on their friends.

"Grian, Doc and Ren aren't with them..." Stress worriedly said as she saw Impulse animatedly talk about what happened, though not being able to hear him through the window. Mumbo placed the book he was reading down, slightly scratching his mustache, likely an unconscious habit whenever he's stressed or worried.

Both Mumbo and Stress know that the hermits are all capable of handling themselves- and if worse comes to worst, they can just respawn. Grian, admittedly their closest friend, is more than capable of handling a sword or even shooting some arrows. He had led the G-Team during the civil war, after all. 

But it still didn't quench the feeling of uneasiness upon not seeing their sandy-haired builder with the group.

"Mumbo? Can you help me stand?"

"Sure thing, hun." 

With Mumbo's help, Stress was able to leave Grian's wooden house, just in time to hear Impulse and Bdubs explain the appearance of the young girl.

"The kid looked so young! And skinny too- like, she hasn't eaten in a while. And dude, get this, her hair is pure white. And yea it's normal for us to have colored hair but man, it's like pure white snow white kind of thing." 

"As white as the infinity room?" Mumbo asked. Those who have been to the infinity room had nodded their heads, much to Bdub's confusion about it. 

"And her eyes were like grey too! Almost like she came from another world."

Xisuma was pressing his hand at the side of his helmet as if he was experiencing a headache. Joe was at his side, worried. 

"Anyway, Doc, Grian and Ren decided to take the long way and walk with her. It'll probably take half an hour to an hour until they get here so..." 

"X, are you okay?"

Xisuma had taken off his helmet- which he rarely does, ever, since every hermit knows how difficult it can be for him to breathe without it. Xisuma used his hand to rub his scarred face, his eyes shut tightly as he looked to be processing everything that has happened. 

"Dude, you look like you're at a brink of passing out! Why don't you rest for a while?" Bdubs and Keralis had stepped forward in concern but Xisuma took a step back, nearly tripping over himself if it weren't for Python gently steadying him from behind. Xisuma placed the helmet back on.

"I will soon. But not now." 

Xisuma deflecting their concerns only made the hermits more concerned than before. However, before any of them could ask, Xisuma had let out a frustrated huff before taking off the ground, the grey smoke particles being left on its wake. 

Mumbo caught sight of their admin disappearing into the nether portal. 

"U-Uh- I'll go check on Shashwami!" Keralis declared, hastily following Xisuma's path. Bdubs had also decided to follow him, and within seconds, the group was reduced to only seven hermits.

Even though they were worried about Xisuma, none of them moved from their spots. It seemed as if they were at a loss of what to do, considering the fact their admin- who usually knows everything, just bailed out without another word. 

Stress let out some soft groans, which was immediately noticed by Mumbo and Iskall.

"Oh, Stress! Why the heck are you out of bed- Mumbo! Why is she out of bed?!" Iskall asked, eyes focusing on the hermit in question as he rubbed soothing circles on his friend's back. Mumbo looked sheepish and remained silent. 

"Calm down, man. The side effects of poisoning are still the same as the usual- though, lasting much longer. Stress just needs to drink milk and some health potions every few hours and within a few days she'll be good as new." Joe explained softly, pulling the worried hermit away from Stress. "Although, you are right that she needs rest."

"We're all staying here until Grian and the others get back, right?" Impulse asked, the worry never once leaving his features. "I don't know about you guys, but I feel uneasy knowing they're still out there." 

"I wouldn't worry too much." Cleo shrugged, searching through an enderchest that she had placed down. She was taking off her god armor and placing it inside for storage, it seems. Cleo pulled out a book. "It's just a little girl, after all."

"Yea, a little girl that came out of nowhere, mind you." 

"Why don't you all just rest? I'm sure we have a bunch of spare beds around!" Python said, successfully breaking up the argument that was bound to happen. Impulse and Cleo locked eyes before looking away, guilt covering their faces. 

Eventually, the hermits that were left in Hermitville dispersed to do as they pleased. Stress was lead back inside Grian's wooden house by Joe, Python and Impulse had decided to take a walk around the village, and Cleo disappeared into one of the buildings, saying about needing to do a project consisting of armor stands. This left Mumbo and Iskall standing around like total idiots who have no idea what they're doing.

"Y'know, I hope Grian and the others are doing better than us here," Iskall said, his arms crossed as he recalled the tension between the hermits a couple of minutes ago- not to mention Xisuma's strange behavior. He knew the admin well enough that he never just brushes off their concerns like that- the man is too nice! 

"I hope so, too." Mumbo sighed, finding the entire atmosphere unpleasant to be in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> will xisuma get a damn nap? find out in the next episode of give xisuma a break!


	3. Chapter 3

"Look at that! It's your reflection!" 

Grian pointed at the water, laughing loudly when the girl slapped the surface with her hand, causing ripples. She let out a squeak, not expecting her reflection to suddenly disappear like that. Grian shook his head softly, petting the girl's hair to calm her down. 

"Ah, it's okay. The image will come back- see!" Sure enough, the ripples soon disappeared, and the two can see their reflections again. Though this time, the girl did not try to reach out to slap its surface again. However, she did lean in slightly closer, a look of awe on her face.

Doc and Ren were standing a couple of blocks away from them, having their own silent conversation but also letting Grian do his magic in making the girl feel more comfortable. 

"So she does have the ability to talk, but doesn't understand nor know how to speak English," Doc said, looking down at the notepad he had somehow found in the depths of his ender chests. Ren, who bit off the end of a golden carrot, nodded in confirmation. "She also seems to know nothing about the overworld... or anything, really."

"Yep. But she has some connections with those black vines and flowers, am I right, Doc?"

Doc absentmindedly nodded, scribbling some more things down on the notepad. "She also came out of nowhere... Obviously, the kid was connected to the thunderstorm that happened last night. Maybe the night cycles, too..." 

Ren stashed his stacks of carrots away back into his inventory, sparing Grian and the girl a glance. There was a soft look on his face as he watched Grian interact with the little girl. Doc noticed it, and also spared a few minutes studying how... caring and soft-spoken Grian was to the younger one. 

Kids aren't really common between servers- nonetheless a server like this one. Most of them also haven't interacted with a child for an embarrassingly long time, which means their caretaking skills wouldn't be top-notch. But it didn't really matter- they weren't part of the server to babysit, Hermitcraft was made for them to have fun and build stuff- make projects together, learn new things and show off your creations. Heck, he doubt children were even allowed in the server, to begin with.

Doc sighed. "Alright, Ren, what are our theories about the kid?"

"Definitely not from this server. Somehow got transported here from another server." Ren shrugged, his attention still focused on the pair in front of him. "Something X can look into once he gets some rest. Man, uh... She could possibly be amnesic?"

The theory made Doc slightly shocked- thought not by a lot. It is a valid theory, definitely something he would look into once the kid gets more comfortable and is able to communicate with them. But still... Having amnesia via traveling between servers is highly unlikely. Sure, memory loss is common but even then they can also be remembered in time. 

Not to mention he still needs to figure out just what kind of server she came from... 

"Hey, guys!" Grian had somehow appeared by their sides, a very ugly-looking flower crown placed on his head. Doc looked over Grian's head to see the kid continuing to inspect her reflection on the lake, a flower crown made out of poppies now placed on top of her hair- which he also noticed was braided into a bun. It seemed kind of a risk to leave her like that but he reckoned Grian told her to stay put.

"Hey, man. How's the kid?" 

Grian looked slightly uncomfortable at the mention of the girl. "Yea... Uh... She's good. Very curious, kind of like a toddler." Grian sighed, tugging on his sleeves. "Anyway, I found something... very concerning."

Cautiously, Grian looked over his shoulder. Once he was sure the girl was occupied he turned back to them and began whispering. 

"You know how loose her shirt was, right? So I was doing her hair for fun, and when most of the hair was in the bun- well, just saying I didn't mean to, but from where I was sitting I can see her back and..." Grian let out a deep breath. "Scars. Lots of it."

Doc and Ren froze. The quill that Doc was holding nearly dropped on the grass.

"What... What kind of scars?" Doc slowly asked, his voice even. 

"Oh goodness... Uhm, something similar to how slaves were being punished? So lots of diagonal slashes all over- they look old but some of them seemed pretty recent. But that's not what I'm mostly concerned about."

"Oh for crying- just say it, Grian!" 

Grian really looked uncomfortable talking about this. "There were... two particular scars on her back. Something similar to where wings would have been grown." 

Doc verbally cursed when he heard Grian. Ren just looked sick, if not angry. 

"So you're telling me that this kid was practically tortured? Not only that, but her wings were pulled off?!" 

Grian and Doc shushed Ren loudly, their eyes turning to the girl. Fortunately, she didn't seem to notice the three males currently fuming with anger, disgust and uncomfortableness for she was too busy humming to herself and tracing her finger on the water body. The hermits held their breathes for a second before Doc sighed.

"I mean, I know hybrid discrimination is still a thing between certain servers but are you actually shitting me right now?"

"All the more reason to figure out where exactly she came from." Doc placed a hand on the furious hybrid's shoulder. Ren eventually calmed down, his ears flattened against his hair. Grian gave him sympathetic rubs on the arm. 

"It's okay, Ren. That doesn't exist in this server."

"I know, I know, but knowing that this kid experienced such things doesn't make me feel very good man. What will the others think?" 

They turned to look at the child again. She looked quite happy and content as of now, but with Grian's inspection and Ren's theory about her being amnesiac, sum those two and it equals to a tragedy. A tragedy this girl doesn't even remember.

"... I don't think we should tell the hermits about this- about the scars, not yet anyway." Grian suggested, the uneasy look on his face not disappearing any time soon. "Maybe X and a few trusted others, but right now we should try and get her to be as comfortable as she can living with us." 

Doc was about to argue and remind the newest hermit that the girl appeared out of nowhere, but was stopped when Grian gave the older male a hard and aggressive look. Doc was stunned when he saw the expression on Grian's face- he had never seen the hermit like this before- no matter how many times he got annoyed or got frustrated, Grian would somehow always have a smile on his face. 

He could barely recognize him. It _scared_ him.

"I will not freaking leaving her be when I know I can do something to help. She may not be a hermit like us but goddammit Doc this is a child who went through torture. Forget the fact she's from another server- forget the fact that she has something to do with black vines or blooming flowers or even Stress' poisoning- she's just a _kid_ who has no idea what's happening." 

Grian was breathing heavily as he ranted, surprisingly with an even voice that managed to prevent the young girl from listening. The two hermits had a stare-off, one unable to back down from knowing what's right and the other who was still stunned from the sudden change of personalities. 

Eventually, Doc gave in. 

"Alright, alright, man, you win. We'll make sure the kid gets settled in. However, that doesn't mean we're gonna hide this from Xisuma. We still have to know her origins... But I promise you, no harm will be done to her."

Grian had a look of relief as he straightened his back, fiddling with the ends of his sleeves before giving Doc a smile. "That's all I ask for."

"Oh, hey little one."

The girl had come forward by the time the tension melted away into a mutual agreement. The braided bun Grian had done was slowly falling out, though the poppy flower crown was still holding most of it up. She looked curious, tipping her head slightly as she stared at Ren, who at this point kneeled down so they were at a similar height. Like Grian, Ren seemed pretty comfortable with the kid.

"You need something?" Ren asked, knowing that she won't understand but for the sake of interactions, he continued anyway. The girl wasn't looking straight at his eyes, but more so on his chest. Or his shirt. His bright, red, shirt. 

"Hmm... let me test something." Doc mumbled, sitting down cross-legged which confused Grian. Like what he expected, his actions made the girl curious and was now paying attention to him. But unlike Ren, she wasn't staring at his shirt (or lack of it, really), but more so on his mechanical eye. 

"Doc? What are you doing?" Grian's question only made the girl's attention change once more, and now she was focused on him. Her eyes were staring at his red sleeves. 

"I... feel like the kid doesn't know what colors are." 

The baffled look on both Ren and Grian's faces nearly made him laugh, but he held it in. "Remember what we discussed? Her having absolutely no memories at all? Maybe her intellectual was also affected, so she doesn't understand basic concepts like reflections or colors. Whenever she looks at one of us, she's always focused on the red parts. Don't you realize that?"

Ren let out an 'oh' like sound. It appears that the girl was now tugging on the ends of Grian's sleeves much to the hermit's obliviousness. "Now that you mention it, it does sound pretty weird. I think the color red caught her attention, which is why she keeps on staring at it."

Grian lifted his arm and watched with amusement as the girl tried to reach for his sleeve. "I wonder why..."  
Their communicators let out a beep, which made the girl jump from surprise. Grian chuckled and soothed the girl by petting her head, reaching into his pocket for his communicator

**< MumboJumbo> Are you guys okay?**   
**< Docm77> Yea. taking a break. Hows Stress?**   
**< Stressmonster101> perfectly alright!**   
**< joehillssays> she is still experiencing the side effects of the poison**   
**< Stressmonster101> jOE**   
**< joehillssays> dont you dare lie young lady**   
**< Stressmonster101> >:(**   
**< Stressmonster101> oh alright yes im still feeling a bit nauseous and the blotches on my ankle still feels like a pain but besides that im perfectly alright!**   
**< joehillssays> :) **   
**< joehillssays> I heard you have a child with you. does she have any specific dietary?**

"What is he saying?"

"Joe is probably making something for her to eat. Besides golden carrots and... apples." 

Ren not so subtly hid the apples he have back on his inventory when Grian and Doc looked at him. The girl, completely oblivious to whatever was happening, was happily munching on an apple that was given to her by the dog hybrid. 

**< Grian> I dont think so no. shes eating an apple rn if that helps**   
**< joehillssays> perfect. come back to Hermitville soon pls. ik you guys havent had your rest, you could suddenly pass out while making your trek back!**   
**< TangoTek> You are such a dad, joe**   
**< joehillssays> well someone has to look out for a handful of master builders and redstoners who lack the decency to care for their health on a daily basis**   
**< ImpulseSV> he has a point lol**   
**< ZombieCleo> this killed me and im already dead**

"Hmm... walking is gonna take too long," Ren muttered. Doc silently agreed, but he doubted the girl would find flying appealing. Maybe Grian can get her hooked into it- knowing him, he'll probably want to do that. Great, now he was imagining what it would be like to have two children- one literally, the other mentally, flying around the islands in top speed, spamming rockets like a mad man.

"Oh yea, I forgot to ask, but what are we gonna call her?" Grian asked them. 

Doc blinked, his brain not processing the question fast enough. Once he did, he let out a soft 'ah'. He had to admit, it was tiring to keep on referring to her as 'girl' or 'kid', so he got why Grian would ask such a thing. 

And to his surprise, it didn't take that long for Doc to figure one out. Grian was keeping the kid occupied when Doc caught sight of his rainbow-feathered necklace. It looked absolutely ridiculous on the smaller hermit, but it gave Doc an idea.

"Iris."

"What?" Ren and Grian looked at Doc in mild surprise. Doc just shrugged at their expressions.

"Iris. Her name can be Iris." 

"Now where are you getting all these ideas, my man?" Ren asked, genuinely impressed. "What have you done to Doc?!"

"Haha, very funny." Doc rolled his good eye, smiling. 

Grian seemed pretty satisfied with the name. "Iris... Iris." He tested out the name, a smile forming on his face. He then turned down to face the younger one. "Yea, it sounds very fitting. Do you like the sound of Iris?" 

The question only made the girl unsurprisingly tip her head in confusion. Although, when Grian repeated the question once more, she seemed pretty happy with the words.

"I think Iris likes it!"

"Wait until she can talk and we'll see."

Grian stuck his tongue out to Doc, who simply rolled his eyes playfully. Seeing the exchange, Iris experimentally stuck her own tongue out.

The creeper-cyborg hybrid had to look away when Ren and Grian started cooing at how cute Iris was. Damn hippies... Although, when Doc noticed Ren's tail wagging excitedly, he got an idea.

* * *

Iskall had changed places with Joe so that he would be watching over Stress as she rest. This left Mumbo to be alone for a while, which he spent on manually harvesting Grian's wheat garden which was bloody torturous for him. Fortunately, it helped pass the time but the second he placed down that last seed onto the soil, Mumbo had declared to never manually farm again. For goodness sake- he was suffering. Sure, it looked nice with Grian's structure but was it necessary? There could have been more things farmed if redstone was involved!

Oddly enough, Mumbo suddenly recalled a time when he and Grian decided to do a 'Building vs Redstone' kind of challenge. Needless to say, having a redstone contraption in your backyard won't look so pretty. 

His point still stands, though. 

Going back to the front of the house, Mumbo caught sight of Joe working on... Wait, what's he doing?

There seemed to be an outdoor kitchen nestled in between the spaces left of the village, decorations here and there to fit the theme of Hermitville (or most of it). There was a hand-made oven made out of bricks, fire flaming inside with the smoke rising out of the chimney. There was also a campfire a block away, a pot dangling over the fire with the support of sticks. Nearby there was a table made out of wooden planks, a cutting board that seemed recently used and variations of food items laid all over. 

"Joe, what are you doing, man? This- That actually smells amazing." Mumbo couldn't help but be stunned at the mouth-watering smell Joe's mini kitchen had provided. Despite the many farms they all have, golden carrots were always their main food source. With so many projects to do, there left little time for them to actually cook something- and as weird as the name golden carrots is, it gave them enough nutrients and energy to fulfill their daily chores. Also, golden carrots aren't really that bad. 

Besides, none of the hermits are picky eaters (although, the majority _are_ lazy cookers.)

Joe laughed, pulling out a pair of mittens that were somehow in his inventory. He put up one finger towards Mumbo, a sign of 'wait one moment'. Wearing his mittens, he reached into the oven and pull out a delicious-looking apple pie. 

"What are you planning to do? Feed a whole village?"

"Not exactly. Have you been checking the chat, Mumbo?"

Slightly embarrassed, Mumbo opened his communicator to read the texts he failed to see. It wasn't his fault that he ignored the notifications! Stress needed water and he was just being a gentleman! 

"I see. And from this, you decided to bake an apple pie?"

Joe only smiled as he placed the pie on the wooden table to cool. "Well, I also made some rabbit stew with golden carrots. I reckon the young lady hadn't eaten in a while, and there's no way I would let a child go hungry."

"I don't think you'd let anyone go hungry, if I'm being honest. But if I may ask..."

Joe's hum was an indication for him to continue. Mumbo adjusted his tie briefly to calm his nerves down. 

"You... seem really keen on meeting this girl, aren't you?"

"Why wouldn't I be? It's always an experience to meet someone new and, well, I'm quite embarrassed to admit but, it's been a while since I've interacted with a child." Joe looked sheepish, taking the mittens off his hands. He briefly checked on the stew by lifting the lid of the pot with a spare stick, a puff of smoke leaving through the gap before closing it again.

Mumbo watched his friend work around the mini kitchen, cleaning up the mess he made and storing away the extra carrots or apples he has used. He wasn't so surprised upon hearing Joe wanting to meet the young girl, for he had practically adopted the role of a father figure in the server. His undying care and concern for others was always his specialty, so for there to be a child it was no doubt he would act towards his instincts and make sure she was in good hands. Before even meeting her, no less.

But yet, Mumbo couldn't help but feel slightly worried. He doubted the girl would pose a threat to any of them, but her sudden appearance was still unsettling. Additionally, with the night cycles acting strange and the mobs behaving more aggressively, no one would blame Mumbo if he believed that she had some part of the responsibility.

Joe should know how unusual her appearance was. After all, he was part of the server since the very beginning, and by that logic, he should know the rules of the server.

And one of the rules happened to be that people can only enter the Hermitcraft server by an invite. Another rule was that minors weren't allowed.

However, Mumbo decided to keep his thoughts to himself for now. Xisuma needs rest and all the other hermits are already tensed and worried about everything that had transpired today. 

"You look deep in thought, Mumbo." 

"Am I that obvious?" Mumbo nervously chuckled, avoiding the curious gaze Joe was giving him. Joe hummed, either to answer Mumbo's question or not. Finishing up his task, Joe then walked over to Mumbo, slightly craning his neck while doing so. 

After a moment of silence, Joe laughed.

"You know, I still remember when you were just a shortie." 

Mumbo felt his cheeks flushing. "W-What- What does that have to do with anything?" 

"Ah, nothing. Just reminiscing the good old days... Like how me and a couple of hermits recognized your talent in redstone and wanted to invite you. Remember that?"

In fact, Mumbo does remember that. He remembered showcasing his redstone skills in a public server event at some point. It was... it was probably some kind of redstone farm, nothing much different than the others he had seen. That was also one of the first few times he had gone to another server.

There was a group that approached him that day. Xisuma and Joe were part of them. 

"Not the redstone contraption, no. It was probably a mess. But I do remember you, Xisuma and the other hermits coming to talk to me." Mumbo said, not quite understanding why Joe would ask him such things. "I was... fourteen, if I remember."

Joe nodded. "Mhmm. Do you remember your answer?"

"I said no because I was a minor." 

"And what age did you finally accept our invite?"

"S-Seventeen..."

"Which is considered?"

"A minor." 

Joe placed his hand on Mumbo's shoulder, giving him a toothy grin. "Exactly! I know the rules very well, and I know that this child is not supposed to be here since she's a minor _and_ uninvited."

Mumbo was still very much confused. If Joe understood those rules very well, why doesn't he find the child's existence in the server unusual, if not worrying? Joe must have been reading his mind because he started talking.

"The rules were implemented for the sake of our safety- and others. However, what is done is already done. Until our very sleep-deprived admin can somehow find the solution to our night cycles, he would have to handle the girl another time. Find out where she came from, see if we can send her back, those kinds of stuff. But for now, it seemed like this girl needs some help, and it would be appreciated if all the hermits can contribute to making her feel welcomed throughout her stay here in the server."

Joe patted Mumbo's shoulder before moving away, leaving Mumbo with very unorganized thoughts as he processed his words. Once he did, Mumbo let out a breathy-like laugh. Of course, leave it to Joe to see the bright side of things as always. If it helped him feel better about the entire situation they're in, he's not sure. However, he supposed he should meet this child before making an assumption that the server was going to be destroyed. 

Honestly, what harm can a child do?

"MUUUUUUUUMMMMMMBBBOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

Mumbo screeched when he was thrown off the ground by a heavyweight, landing roughly and painfully on the dirt paths. 

"Oh my goodness- I'm so sorry-! Oh, wait a minute- YES!" 

It took Mumbo a moment to get his mind together to realize Grian had literally crashed into him. The shorter hermit was on top of him, and while Mumbo was still trying to figure out what the heck was happening, Grian seemed pretty joyful.

"Ha! I'm first!" 

"Gri- I can't breathe!" 

Grian let out a 'whoops' and rolled over to one side, allowing Mumbo to properly breathe again and catch his breath. Still laying on the dirt path, Mumbo turned his head to glare at his friend. "You could have killed yourself!"

"But I didn't." Cheeky as always, Grian grinned back. "Besides, you cushioned my fall!"

"With the risk of getting me killed."

"But you didn't?"

"I will smack you I swear-"

Joe appeared in Mumbo's vision, the worried hermit looking over their spread bodies on the ground. "Uh, you two okay? Need any health potions?"

"Nah." Grian waved his hand dismissively. "Although, I need to know what that amazing smell is!"

Mumbo pushed his upper body off the ground, resting on his elbows as he looked over where he knew is the mini kitchen. "That would be Joe's cooking. It's for the girl."

Grian had also pushed himself off the ground, stretching his arms above his head from where he sat. 

"Iris. Her name is Iris."

This surprised Mumbo. Earlier, Iskall had mentioned how none of the three hermits that found the girl mentioned her name- Or, well, no one mentioned the girl has a name, but it's clear there were a lot of things they don't know about. It's quite an interesting choice of name, too. 

Unfortunately, before he could ask, another figure had landed on the ground in front of them, this time sporting a torn lab coat and green skin.

"Hey, Doc!" Grian waved cheerfully. Doc tucked the wings behind his back, eyebrows slightly scrunched up when he realized that some of the feather-like material was falling off. He waved back to Grian a moment after.

"Sup, man. What are you two doing on the ground?"

"Grian crashed into Mumbo and nearly died," Joe answered.

Mumbo huffed while Grian laughed. 

Doc looked around the empty village, other than the four of them. "Where are the others?"

"Roaming around... some of them, anyway. Xisuma went back to the nether so Keralis and Bdubs followed him." Mumbo replied, finally having the conscious to stand up from the dirty ground. "Impulse, Python, and Cleo are still here and Iskall is looking after Stress in Grian's rustic house."

When Mumbo took note of the newcomers, he realized there was a certain dog hybrid missing.

"Where's Ren?"

Doc looked like he was about to answer, but stopped to look behind Mumbo.

"Hey, guys! Ren-diggity-dog is finally here!"

Unlike the other two hermits who came flying down from the sky, Ren was jogging towards them with a small child-like figure seated on his shoulders. He slowed to a halt once he reached the group, a wide smile on his face. Despite the sweat formed on his skin, Ren didn't seem out of breath from the run. 

Mumbo didn't care about that, though. He was too busy staring at the child.

It was like how Impulse had described her- very skinny, and her long hair was as white as the snowy tundra. Her skin was pale, not like a sheet of paper but more so as if she had never seen the light of day. She was wearing some kind of tattered dress that matched her hair, though clearly covered by dirt and dust. Grey eyes stared back at him, full of life and wonder.

She would have been like a blank slate of grey and white if it weren't for the red poppy flower crown making a huge contrast. It fitted her quite nicely, so Mumbo assumed it was Grian's work. 

So this was the child. Huh. 

When the silence between the group lasted a bit longer than it should have, Joe not so subtly coughed, effectively catching everyone's attention.

"So, who's hungry?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you guys enjoy the mystery surrounding the little gal
> 
> dont worry all the domestic and fluffy stuff will happen sooner than later. also xisuma will get his freakin nap soon


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay sliiight note before reading the chapter  
> believe it or not, im fairly new to hermitcraft and up to this point ive only watched grian's series on season 6. however, ive been watching more of the hermits in season 7  
> that said, this chapter features a bunch of the hermits being introduced/mentioned with a few lines or so. their personalities may be out of character and off since ive only taken the fanon interpretations of these hermits, as well as a few headcanons here and there and from what i know  
> okay with that said pls enjoy this chapter kbye

News of the three hermits arriving back to Hermitville safely spread fast (and not just because they have a chat group where every single hermit can have access to). It was only about a minute after Joe had sent a message that Impulse and Cleo came running back to where they were currently seated on the grass, a plate of either stew or apple pie balanced on their laps.

"Did... Uh, hey there." 

Ren waved to Impulse when the two arrived, knowing pretty well that the greeting was directed to Iris who was seated between him and Grian. 

"Hey, Impulse, Cleo! Wanna join us?" 

Impulse and Cleo glanced at each other, silently questioning one another before agreeing with Ren. Joe helped them serve a healthy amount of stew on their plates, and when they joined the group on the grass, Doc filled them in on what happened and how the girl would be referred to as Iris for now. 

Doc mentioned about how she doesn't know much at all but left out the part of where they found out about the scars, something Ren was grateful for. The scars were very personal- most hermits have them, and most chose not to share about them. Not even Xisuma, who had shown the scars on his face more than a handful of times by now, had explained where it originated from. 

Iris made some noises as she munched on her apple pie, very pleased and happy. This made Ren smile just seeing the younger one be so positive. As much as he wanted to find out more about this mysterious child, he found that he doesn't really need to know about it. 

Maybe it was from past experiences and maybe it was because of how he was treated when he was younger, it doesn't matter so much. In time, they would know. But for now, he'll make sure the kid will settle well into their chaotic community. 

"So, she can't speak?" Impulse asked once Doc was done explaining. 

"Iris _can_ speak, or we assumed she can. It just seemed like she lost the ability to understand and speak English or anything to do with languages as a whole." Doc clarified, taking a bite out of his apple pie. Swallowing, he continued. "Of course, we could assume she's just selectively mute but until she learns English we won't know. Side note, she doesn't understand what I'm saying right now." 

Ren noticed Cleo staring at Iris for quite some time now. A tiny part of him felt a sense of protectiveness, and instinctively he scooted closer to Iris, who remained oblivious. Cleo noticed the action but said nothing about it. 

"I have some experience with kids. If everyone agrees, I can hold some classes for her."

"That would be appreciated."

"Definitely. However, I'm more worried about how she would react to being alone with... me." 

Having been part of the Hermitcraft server for so many years, Ren was so used to everyone's appearances, no matter how unusual it was. Doc's hybrid creeper and cybernetic prosthetics were normal, Jevin's translucent blue skin was normal, Python's red creeper skin was normal... Cleo's zombified skin was also normal. 

He was so used to seeing his friends that he forgot that it is indeed unusual for some players to see people that were part-mobs. Cleo was obviously not a zombie, or at least not as a whole, but it became clear to him as to why Cleo would be cautious of what Iris would think of her.

Some parts of her skin were torn away, revealing the remaining meat inside and her ribs. Her arms were also stitched together, and if need to be, it can be detached. That would certainly creep out any child nearby.

But Iris seemed pretty... chill. She did not react much when Cleo had arrived, simply looking at her, until resuming her feast on the apple pie. Maybe it was because Grian was nearby, thus feeling much safer?

Although, if Iris can handle seeing Doc, certainly she would be fine with Cleo? 

Ren suddenly remembered when Doc had suggested for them to have a race, mainly to pick up the pace but to also excite the child a bit. To be honest, Iris looked anxious when she realized Grian would be going ahead, but after a while and a lot of reassurance, Ren had her on his shoulders and he was running all the way back to Hermitville. 

Iris was comfortable enough to be around Ren.

"Maybe Grian and I should come with? Just to be safe?" Ren suggested. "With not knowing what's happening she's definitely gonna feel anxious and stuff and would want someone familiar to be with her." 

"That's a good idea, actually. But what about the hippie commune?" Grian wondered out loud. Doc snorted and Impulse laughed at that. The others only rolled their eyes, remembering that those four are actually going against each other. Let it be known that it only started because Grian was up to his shenanigans and made a time machine. 

"This is great and all, but we still have to tell everyone else about what's been happening." Mumbo piped in, having been quiet this entire time until now. "There are still others back in the mainland, and all of us need to make a decision as to what will become of her."

Almost immediately, Ren let out a low growl while Grian placed a protective hand on Iris' shoulder. Sensing the distress, Iris looked up at her temporary guardians with worried eyes. Mumbo noticed their behavior.

"I'm not saying that we should kick her out or anything that can do to hurt her! I just think it's best if all the hermits share their opinions about the entire situation is all before making any major decisions."

The clarification calmed the two hermits down, but it didn't do much to quench the thought of leaving the kid alone. Truth be damned, but Ren was feeling a bit too attached to her. 

"Knowing everyone, I'm pretty sure they'll let Iris stay in the server for a while until we can figure things out!" Joe said, an attempt to disrupt the tensions between his friends. "We're all too nice for that."

"May I remind you that Team Star made a diss track about us?"

Ren couldn't help but laugh, making Grian glare at him. He couldn't help it, he remembered the look of shock on Grian's face when he showed him the recording of the diss track. The mixture of amazement and horror was splendid.

"Come on, you liked it!"

"It hurt enough the first time."

The reply caused the other hermits to laugh, much to Grian's displeasure. Though he was soon joining them because let's be honest, no matter how many pranks or civil wars or economic rivalries they may have, none of those will get in the way of their friendship with one another. At the end of the day, they will laugh about what they've done and moved on with their lives.

If they can handle a civil war, they can handle a child. Together. 

Joe's communicator beeped. Ren watched as his expression morphed into one of concern before shifting to relief as he saw the message. 

"Yo, Joe, you okay man?" 

Joe nodded, typing something down on his communicator before shifting his focus back to the group in front of him. "Yep! Just recieved a message from Keralis that Xisuma is indeed safe and is taking a nap in his base. He and Bdubs are gonna look after him for now and make sure he doesn't do much work for the rest of the morning."

"Finally, X deserves it."

Ren said, relief in his voice. Though, he had a sinking suspicion that Xisuma's nap wouldn't last long, anyway. 

"But, does he know about Iris yet?"

Impulse frowned. "Yes- well, not about _Iris_ , but he does know there is a child that came out of nowhere. Why? You got something in mind?" 

"A server-wide meeting in the shopping district! From there, we can discuss our next course of action!" 

No one replied immediately to Ren's suggestion for they have all directed their attention to the white-haired kid. Grian was powerless and could only watch with dumbfounded amusement as Iris began nibbling on his arm, covered by the sleeve. It didn't last long as Iris pulled away a moment after, a look of disgust on her face at the horrid taste of inedible clothing. 

"You owe me a new sweater, young lady." Grian said flatly, staring at the wet spot on his sleeve. 

Iris let out some random noises, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

* * *

After some discussion and genuinely worried remarks that made their local prankster and lovable dog hybrid overprotective of the child, it was then decided that Grian would stay in Hermitville to look after Iris. 

Stress would've stayed too due to her condition, but they all had a mutual agreement that every hermit has to be present during the meeting. Because of similar viewpoints, Ren had taken the pleasure of voicing out Grian's perspective as he would not be able to attend the meeting himself.

"How are you doing, Stress?" Cleo asked, helping her friend put on her elytra. Stress tested out the artificial wings, wobbling slightly when it suddenly spread out. Testing to see if she can still manually move her wings, she nodded to herself before replying.

"The blotches on my ankle is still disgusting to look at and I feel sick every now and then, but besides that, I'm pretty alright! Just got to be careful flying through the hallways." Stress smiled reassuringly, patting her zombie friend on the shoulder. Her skin felt cold under her fingertips, though it did not bother Stress. "Don't worry about me." 

Cleo mutely nodded, unable to say anything to that. 

"Don't worry, Grian, we'll be back in no time. You just got to make sure nothing gets destroyed while we're gone, yea?" Iskall was talking to Grian, Mumbo at his side. Stress watched the architects have their conversation- though it was mostly Iskall and Mumbo telling Grian to not cause any more chaos in their already chaotic village due to the build-off. During that entire time, the girl was by his side, their hands clutched together tightly.

She was told that her name was Iris, which Stress found the name lovely and oddly fitting for some reason. The others didn't tell her much, putting that to a hold until everyone is in the shopping district. Until then, Stress was left to study the small figure with curiosity.

A few seconds must have passed before Iris sensed someone staring at her, for she turned her head and met with Stress' gaze. It caused chills down her spine, knowing she had been caught by the child. Yet she continued, mostly out of curiosity.

Eventually, Iris got bored and started staring at Stress's pink jacket. 

"Well, we better get going. It's gonna be a long flight and if we're fast enough, we can get there before noon." Impulse said, pulling Stress away from staring at the child. Stress didn't reply, but she did prepare herself for the long flight that was about to come. 

Looking around, she realized everyone was ready. 

With a wave from Grian (that was soon copied by the child), everyone used their rockets to give themselves some height before landing on the platform where the nether portal appeared in front of them. They all walked through one by one.

Before Stress allowed herself to step through the purple gateway, she faintly heard Grian asking Iris if she liked guinea pigs. Shaking her head at the absurdity of the question, she walked through and allowed the portal to send her to the Nether.

The blazing heat of their literal hell made Stress uncomfortable and already miserable. She preferred having to be surrounded by the ice biome of her castle and watch the snowflakes fall down outside her window. She preferred feeling the tips of her fingers be numbed due to the freezing temperatures other than her skin feeling uncomfortably sticky.

"Alright, let's get going," Doc said, not waiting for a response before he began spamming rockets, using it to lift himself off the ground and fly through the narrow hallway. The others followed suit, and Stress waited for a few moments before using her own set of rockets, following the group leading most of the way.

Although three minutes into their trip, she heard an unfortunate soul slam into one of the trapdoors used for decoration behind her. Impulse, who was at her five o'clock, said something along the lines of 'I'll get it!' before she noticed Impulse changing directions and going back. 

Multi-tasking, Stress pulled her communicator out and looked at the chat.

**MumboJumbo experienced kinetic energy**  
**< Grian> f**  
**< MumboJumbo> dont even **  
**< Keralis> f**  
**< FalseSymmetry> f**  
**< BdoubleO100> f**  
**< iJevin> f**  
**< MumboJumbo> I am being cyberbullied.**

Stress giggled. At least Mumbo can reach the shopping district faster than them.

Ahead of her, she saw the hermits taking a sharp dive down and followed suit. The miniature map of their entire server laid beyond her, and she couldn't help but still be amazed at how much details it was put in to make sure everyone's bases were marked by their respective nether portals. 

Safely reaching down on the glass floor, she followed the group to the nether portal that would send them to the shopping district.

When everyone got transported back to the shopping district, Stress had the overwhelming urge to vomit. 

She had run to a nearby bush once she felt the fresh air of the overworld and puked her guts out, ignoring the disgusting noises from her fellow hermits as she let it out, cringing at the ugly color hidden between the leaves of the bushes. Her throat burned and her mouth was left with a horrid taste of her own vomit. Thankfully, Joe was by her side, handing her a glass bottle of water. 

Chugging it within seconds, Stress felt better.

"You good?" Joe asked, rubbing her back in soothing circles. Wiping her mouth with her sleeve, she nodded. 

Now that she wasn't feeling too nauseous, she turned around and noticed all of the hermits (except for Grian, of course) there. Embarrassment filled her body, and she internally groaned for acting like a nuisance in their beloved shopping district.

"Please ignore that..." 

False gave her a sympathetic pat on the back, laughing a tiny bit. Whether to lessen the awkwardness of the entire situation or enjoying the look of suffering on Stress' face, she doesn't know. Though in the end, she's still grateful for the pats on her back anyway. 

"How about we go to a much wider space where we don't, er, ruin the plants around the shopping district," Xisuma said, who looked considerably much better. The eyebags were still there, though much to Stress's relief she found the admin visibly more relaxed than before. Maybe that small nap really did help.

The hermits agreed with him, and took off into the skies to find a more suitable place to have their meeting. It took a short while for all of them to land in the chaotic fields of the civil war, where their final fight took place between the large bases belonging to G-Team and Team Star.

"Alright, so discussion time. Cool, what are we talking about?" Tango, with visible confusion found behind his red eyes, asked, taking his spot by Impulse and Zedaph. The hermits who were unable to leave their shelters during the night looked over to the ones who did, who Stress noticed looked quite uncomfortable and unsure. It was then Stress remembered that at most, only three people really knew what had transpired during the night. 

Luckily for them, Doc decided to speak up and gave everyone the run-down of what has happened. Starting from the bolts of lightning that struck down purple flames, forming some kind of path which lead to a cave, then explained how there were black vines and dark fungi/plants which poisoned Stress (oddly, she silently thought). Then what comes after that confused the hermits, because as they continued down the cave, there were purple flowers blooming which provided light, and inside they found a bunch of black vines protecting a little girl with white hair and grey eyes. 

The girl couldn't understand them, or at least not the language. The girl doesn't seem to know quite a lot. The girl seemed rather attached to Grian.

The girl was named Iris by Doc.

"And beyond this point is just theories and assumptions about Iris." Doc sighed, exhausted from repeating the story. "Since we know nothing about her and she knows nothing about anything."

"Right... So we have a kid in our server who I'm assuming is not supposed to be here, but is now, and is practically a blank slate? No memories, no skills, nothing?" Jevin questioned aloud, his arms crossed in front of him. "Damn, that's pretty scary."

The other hermits have also expressed their concern for _and_ about the child- whether feeling sympathy for the girl's current condition or wary of her sudden appearance in the server. Stress didn't think the girl was evil or anything- like Jevin said, she's practically a blank slate that was tossed into their server, likely for unfortunate reasons.

"Xisuma? What do you think?"

Xisuma looked deep in thought. The other times she had seen him, he was literally hunched over, staring at screens full of codings and data that she did not understand for hours. He kept on getting headaches and was at the brink of passing out. Now that he had a bit of needed rest, Xisuma seems to be conscious enough to make some form of delicate decision or thought.

"First of all, I believe it is immediate red flags that the girl- Iris entered the server without any invites made by me. And there may have been a probability that Iris' appearance during one of the most violent storms in the server had something to do with the night cycles we have been experiencing for a while, though it could just be a coincidence." 

At the corner of her eye, Stress noticed Ren, Mumbo and Doc looking tensed. Everyone else remained quiet to listen to their admin, but Stress worried that Xisuma's opinion would contrast Ren's and maybe even Doc's. She wasn't sure why Mumbo was tensed, maybe it was because of Grian, knowing his perspective of Iris?

Nonetheless, Xisuma continued.

"However, taking Doc's explanation into consideration, I think it is best if we accept Iris into our community for the time being. Don't worry, I'll still be working on fixing the night cycles and finding out where Iris came from."

"Yea, once you get some sleep for once!" Bdubs' voice can be heard from the circle they have unintentionally made so that everyone can see one another. Keralis, who was beside him, burst out laughing which was closely followed by Impulse, then Tango. Soon enough, everyone was chuckling over Bdub's words, even Xisuma was rolling his eyes with a fond smile.

"But this is merely just my opinion. I need everyone to share their opinions about Iris and the entire situation as a whole. We are a community, so we will make a decision together."

It was silence after that. None of the hermits looked conflicted or unsure about their decisions, though none of them seemed to be willing to share. Stress felt her chest tighten due to her anxious feeling, yet it did not stop her from voicing out her thoughts to her fellow friends. 

"I agree with Xisuma. I've seen her once, and she seemed pretty innocent- if not a victim from something unknown. It wouldn't be right to push a kid away when she's clearly in need of help and support from us adults. I say we accept her." 

She saw Scar smile at her words, Jellie nestled into his arms. "What Stress says, basically. Sure, a kid suddenly appearing in our world seems pretty weird, but let's be honest, when has our server ever been normal?"

"I blame Grian for that- Oh! Also, Ren-diggity-dog and Grian supports Iris joining our small knitted community."

Soon, everyone was talking over one another, showing overwhelming support for Xisuma's decision in wanting to let Iris into their community. Some people were showing their skepticism about Iris and her unknown origins, most specifically Wels, Impulse and even Cub, but they still agreed that as long as nothing else goes wrong in their server, they'll give her a chance.

"Hold on! Wait! So we accept her into our community... What are we gonna do?" Iskall asked, having to project his voice so that everyone can hear him. "I don't think she'd be able to build a base on her own, nonetheless defend herself against the mobs at night. Also, most of us are pretty busy with projects and stuff."

"I think we can make some form of arrangement," Xisuma replied casually. "Doc, you mentioned Grian being the closest to her, yes? For now, I think it would be safer for her and for us if she sticks by him for a few weeks, let her get accustomed to our very... vibrant community. Maybe have a schedule going so that she can meet everyone in small groups. How does that sound?"

Most voiced out their agreement. The others nodded.

"Great. I'll be sending direct messages to some of you about the schedule- mainly concerning her education and other things that's gonna help her. If there's anything you want to suggest, then please feel free to share. other than that, you all are free to continue-"

Before Xisuma had finished his sentence, some of the hermits were already launching themselves into the air, bidding their goodbyes as they quickly made their way to their respective bases, most likely to prepare themselves in seeing Iris. Xisuma only shook his head with amusement. 

Some people stayed, like Joe, TFC, Cleo, Ren, Doc, Mumbo and Iskall. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and realize it was False.

"How about I fly you back to base so you can rest?" She softly suggested. 

Grateful for having a friend look out for her, Stress nodded and checked to see if she had enough rockets to last. Seeing that she has more than enough, she took off into the skies, False following close behind her. 

She ignored the layer of frost forming on her fingertips.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you guys have no idea how much im itching to just toss iris to the rest of the hermits and see how they react

"Oh my god, I am a genius." 

Grian had to resist squealing like a little school girl, if only to protect his pride. He knew he shouldn't be proud of his lack of organizing (it's honestly a bad habit to teach Iris) but it was by pure luck that the first shulker box he opened contained an old hoodie he considered wearing when he first opened up his guinea pig services earlier in the season.

The hoodie was basically a replica of his guinea pig onesie, though slightly smaller and only having the top half. Stress, Cleo and False could probably find some clothes or make some clothes that Iris could wear, but for now this will do.

Turning back to Iris, who was poking at Villager Grian's tunic, he called out her name. Iris turned, though whether it was because of Grian's voice or she recognized her new name, he doesn't quite know. Although, he's pretty pleased when Iris decided to leave Villager Grian be and walked up to him.

"What do you think about this, Iris? Looks good, eh?" Grian asked, showing Iris the hoodie on full display. Iris stared at it curiously, then reached out to touch the soft material between her fingertips. Grian let Iris take it so she can inspect it further before going back to searching through his mess. 

It had been about three minutes since his friends had left to meet up with the others. He's probably expecting to be alone for the next half an hour or so, knowing how long it would take to get to the nether hub. He would feel bad if any of them accidentally fell prey to the trapdoors that aligned their hallways. 

His communicator beeped. Grian pulled it out of his pocket and looked at the screen, expecting to read a message. However, he only burst out laughing when realized it was only Mumbo being a spoon.

**MumboJumbo experienced kinetic energy**   
**< Grian> f**   
**< MumboJumbo> dont even**

Grian smiled to himself. Iris had appeared by his side, most likely wondering what the strange device is if her usual tip on the head was anything to go by. Grian settled on the floor, his legs crossed to allow Iris to see better. 

"This little device right here is called a communicator. There are other names for it, like a phone or a cell, but here in the server we usually use this for communicating with one another, so thus, communicator." It only took a second for Grian to remember that Iris doesn't know what he's saying. Still, it doesn't seem to bother Iris that much, only poking at the edges of his communicator with mild interest.

It was from there that he noticed Iris was carrying a book under her arm, the shiny layer of its magic surrounding it in a deep enchanting purple. 

"You found an enchantment book, nice." 

Iris perked up when Grian pointed at the enchantment book. She grinned widely, and began murmuring as she took the large book into both hands and unattached the red ribbon from its button. Grian watched as Iris flipped through the pages of the book, before settling on one. She looked up at Grian and started making sounds, almost like an animal as she repeatedly pointed at a line on the book.

"I don't understand what you're trying to make me do, Iris." Grian frowned, confused. He scooched a bit closer to see what Iris was pointing at, but even so, the moment he recognized the Galactic writing on its ancient pages, he finds himself more lost than before. 

"I'm sorry, Iris. I'm afraid I don't understand Galactic..." Iris looks disappointed that Grian did not understand her. She decided to leave him be and continue reading the book on her own. For a while, Grian found it odd that Iris was keen on reading an Enchantment Book, but the minute he processed that Iris was reading an Enchantment Book, Grian let out a gasp of surprise. Iris briefly looked up before resuming her reading.

Iris can read Galactic! One of the hardest and ancient languages to learn, and this child can read it. 

Okay, truth be told, Galactic is one of the common languages found within the overworld other than English, but while it is found within enchantment books, it is difficult for people to actually learn and understand. They didn't came up with a translator when the first world had been formed, after all. 

Luckily, times have changed, and by the time Grian had joined the Hermitcraft server, there was already a list of certain words and characteristics used that can be translated to the English alphabet. 

Deciphering texts is a fun little project, but being able to understand sentences, paragraphs- nonetheless an entire book? Yea, Grian prefers to suffer in redstone than having to learn the language. 

This is still interesting though. Because this means that Iris' first and likely main language was Galactic. The only other person he knew who also grew up knowing Galactic as a child was Xisuma. And knowing that Galactic is often spoken in the End, there could be some interesting speculations and assumptions.

For now, Grian put those thoughts in the back of his mind, locked in a little safe to bring up later. 

He went back to searching through his junk. After about a minute, he finally found what he was looking for; an empty book and a quill. He flipped through the pages, satisfied that it was still left intact before walking over to where Iris was seated, though this time the guinea pig hoodie held close to her chest.

"You silly goose, that's not how you wear a hoodie." Grian talking caused Iris to pause her reading, turning her attention to the older hermit. Grian reached down to grab hold of the guinea pig hoodie. "You wear it over you're head, like this... Er, bring your arms up, yep, like that."

It didn't take too long for Grian to successfully fit her arms through the sleeves, and soon he was pulling down the ends of it when her head got through the hole. He then reached behind her and pulled the large hood over her head, guinea pig ears sticking out from the top. 

"You are so adorable!" The hermit cooed at the sight. The hoodie was large enough that when Iris stood up, it reached her knees. The sleeves were too long, and Grian resist the urge to cry when he saw Iris curiously staring at her sleeve-covered hands. This child is too cute it was a mistake to leave him alone with her. 

(Edit: Iris in a guinea pig hoodie requested by a fellow reader)

The book Grian had taken out was left on the ground. Iris noticed the item and kneeled down to pick it up.

"Oh, that's an empty book. You can write and draw anything you want. Here, we use these modified quills. They're designed and made by Mumbo and Impulse to make our lives easier." Grian picked up the quill- which was really just a chicken feather modified so that when someone uses it, they can immediately use the ink. Rest in pieces to their ancestors. 

Iris accepted the quill from Grian and experimentally made some scribbling lines on the paper. The older hermit watched silently as he left Iris to her devices. 

Random scribbles and lines eventually turned into shapes- mainly circles and triangles crowding the first page. When there weren't any room left for her doodling, Iris turned to a new fresh page and continued without missing a beat. Her doodling were random things, so Grian was unable to guess what she was drawing.

Although, when Iris moved to the third page, her random doodling started taking shape. She started off drawing a circle like usual, but this time she added a body to it. The top rectangular shape narrowing down until it was made into very long but blocky-like legs. She added arms and spikes on top of the circle, acting as hair. Grian watched, astonished as Iris made the eyes- though while the right eye was just a dot, the other side was more circular and larger, almost mimicking some kind of abnormality to it. She scribbled slightly on that circle, making the shape more bolder and taking more space. She shaded on the right arm. 

"You're drawing Doc." Grian gasped. 

Iris continued, paying no mind to what Grian was saying. She moved on and drew another circle and body, similar to the Doc drawing but this time much more leaner. She had two lines going down the front of the shirt. Instead of eyes, she drew shades. Unlike spikes, she drew long lines imitating long hair thrown over one shoulder. She drew dog ears on top and a tail.

"That's Ren."

Again, Iris ignored Grian. She drew another circle, though this time much more shorter than the other. She still followed exactly what she did, though this time the shirt was much more baggier, and Grian noticed how she drew a pair of wings behind the drawing. The hair, though spiky, had visible bangs on it. 

It didn't take too long for Grian to figure out that Iris just drew the first three people she saw in that cave.

"This is amazing... Wow." However, Iris wasn't done. She scribbled... shapes above sketch-Grian's head, then drew badly shaped stars around his figure. She made swirly lines around him. She drew weirdly-shaped eyes.

"What are you doing?" 

Iris lifted the book, inspecting her work before shoving it on Grian's face.

"Whoa! Calm down, Iris." Grian chuckled, gently grasping the book so he can have a closer look on the drawings himself. He admired the artistic skill Iris possessed and chuckled to himself. It will be an interesting experience to find out how Scar would react knowing his title of most artistic is being challenged by an eight-year-old.

Although, he directed his attention to the third figure- a drawing of himself. While he is slightly offended that Iris drew Grian as a short man- heck, even shorter than Ren, who's actually the same height as him, he couldn't help but wonder what those extra stars, eyes and scribbles are around him. 

Scar had once told him that art is basically another language. When an artist creates a piece, it's often made from their own perspective of the real world. A child's drawing is not much different from that. 

She didn't do the same scribbles around Doc and Ren- only him. Grian doesn't know why he found this odd. 

"I don't suppose you can explain to me about those scribbles around my head?" Grian asked. The question went over Iris' head, instead grabbing the book back from his hands and continuing her scribbling session.

"I think we have to teach you some manners as well..." 

She had flipped into another page by then, starting a new drawing. Grian recognized the puffy scribbles of the leaves and the long curvy-ish trunk. It was a tree. She made many of those trees around the edges of the paper. At the center, she drew small triangles and made squares at the bottom of it. She duplicated the drawings. 

"Is that a village?" Grian wondered out loud when he saw houses. Iris then drew block-like creatures holding what looks like a flower- an iron golem, he guessed. She drew large rectangles and cut them into three pieces inside, the two outer layer being shaded- a farm. She drew stick figures all over the place. 

Outside of the perimeter of the village, she drew stick men with swords. 

"Iris?" 

Grian's call was ignored. Iris was applying more pressure to her strokes, nearly ripping the paper. She began mumbling, pressing the quill down in quick, uneven and frantic lines and shapes, some lines bolder than the others. Some practically seeping through the other side of the page. 

Iris was breathing heavily, and it was then Grian noticed tears streaming down her pale cheeks.

"Iris, stop!"

Grian had to grab Iris' wrists, bringing them up together to forcefully stop her. The quill dropped from Iris' shaking hands, the item falling lifelessly on the ground by the book. Iris tried to pull away from the hermit, making some kind of pained sounds as she does so. The panic and fear that showed in her dark, stormy eyes broke Grian's heart. 

"It's okay, Iris. I'm here, I'm here..." Grian brought the struggling girl closer to him. Using one hand to hold her wrists together, he used his free arm to wrap around the smaller girl's waist, pulling her close into an embrace. Iris squirmed, trying to desperately get away. But Grian remained stubborn and continued to hold her, rubbing her back and softly talking in order to calm the frantic girl down

Iris soon quieted, her frantic moving ceased to a halt. She was still breathing heavily, but Grian was relieved when Iris settled into his arms, no longer fighting him.

What happened? Still cradling her, Grian looked down at the book that was still opened, turned to her most recent drawings. The original drawing- the one with just the village, was overtaken by her frantic scribbles. At first it was indescribable, but turning his head just lightly, Grian realized that it was entirely something else.

Galactic words were written all over the page in a hurry, so some parts were quite unreadable. Though if he asked Joe or Xisuma, they could probably still decipher it. However, it wasn't what caught his eye. 

There were more hard scribbles near the center of the page, the pressured strokes making some form of circle. A slit was at the center- from top to bottom, similar to like a cat's eye. Around the inner circles were shaded- or... as shaded as it can be if any of the lines indicate anything. 

After a few more minutes of staring, Grian let out a gasp of surprise.

It was the eye of ender. Iris drew the eye of ender. 

Why?

Grian felt vibrations against his chest and found out it was Iris mumbling to herself.

"Iris? Are you okay?" 

The girl lifted her head from his chest, allowing Grian to see the tear-stained cheeks and the red-rimmed eyes. But ultimately, it allowed Grian to see the confusion on her face as she inspected her surroundings, almost as if she was clueless to what had happened less than ten minutes ago. She then turned to look up at Grian, a questioning look on her face. 

Grian sighed, running a hand through his sandy locks. "I don't know what happened either, Iris. I can't ask you since you don't seem to understand me."

She wiggled from where she sat. Grian loosened his hold on Iris, allowing her to free herself from his hug.

It was strange to see Iris acting as herself after what happened. It's even more strange that Iris didn't notice the ominous drawing of an eye of ender made by her own hands. Everything was back to normal. 

So why does it feel like something was wrong? 

Villager Grian made a noise that caused Grian to groan.

"What do you mean I'm thinking too much? May I remind you who saved you?"

Villager Grian made an unimpressed look.

"I know I'm just continuing the time loop but- hey! At least you're not in Area 77, unlike my time machine."

More Villager Grian noises.

"Oh god, I really am going crazy, am I? And it's only been... what, thirty minutes?" It was at that point that Grian finally realized that he sounded like a mad-man, talking to a villager he could not understand with a child that's still occupied with drawing. 

Maybe he should have asked Mumbo or Iskall to keep him company. 

"I wonder what they're doing right now." Grian thought to himself, his attention going back to the frantic drawing still shown on the pages. 

Grian, Doc and Ren had assumed that Iris knew nothing of what's happening- no memories of her past life or even a recollection of basic skills. If that's the case, then why would she know about villages containing farms and iron golems holding flowers? Why would she draw those stick men holding stick-swords outside of the village?

Why draw an eye of ender right on top of that? 

Or a more pressing matter... Why does it seem like Iris doesn't even know what she's doing? 

Sighing to himself, Grian kneeled down to pet the hooded girl. She hummed, though she did not pause her hand from making elaborate shapes around the pages. Grian swore he saw her drawing a mustache on one of the circles. 

He should talk to Doc and Ren about what he just experienced, maybe even bring Xisuma into the mix. He probably knows what's happening with Iris, right? 

Somewhere on the floor, his communicator beeped.

* * *

It was somehow surprising to find a couple of hermits sticking around after Xisuma had dismissed them. He expected maybe one or two- like Doc or Ren or both, but having TFC and two-thirds of the Architechs here? Not to mention Joe and Cleo, too?

"Is there something you want to discuss with me?" Xisuma asked politely, eyeing the hermits that decided to stick around. 

The eldest of the bunch, TFC, walked forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. The weight felt familiar, and when Xisuma felt a large thumb rubbing over the space between his neck and shoulders, he nearly wanted to cry for some reason. 

"Not to discuss, but to tell you as a friend. Please, get some sleep." TFC smiled, his eyes wrinkling underneath. Xisuma let out a shuddering breath when he saw the look TFC was giving him- full of warmth and care. It was no surprise- it shouldn't, because TFC had looked after him when he first joined the server.

A complete role-reversal, since Xisuma had long gained his admin powers all those years ago. Yet that's nothing compared to the years of experience TFC had. 

"But-" 

"I know you've been working hard to find out what the heck is happening to the night cycles. Heard from many that you haven't been getting enough sleep. With the addition of Iris, your workload practically doubled." TFC gave him a firm squeeze before letting go. "I'm not telling you to stop, X. But your health is always important."

"That's what I've been saying!" Joe huffed from the sidelines.

"You only have one body. So please, get some rest. Oh, and eat something." 

Xisuma's glad he wears his helmet 24/7 because it just dawned on him that there were other hermits still mingling around. They saw his exchange with TFC and saw how TFC was talking to him as if he was one of his own children. It made him burn from embarrassment from being seen by others during a personal moment. Although, when he looked around, he found out others were grinning or showing their approval with TFC's words. 

"Yea, a thirty-minute nap isn't gonna last you an entire day," Cleo stated, grinning because she knew Xisuma was feeling a bit shameful. Goddammit. 

TFC chuckled. "Well, I'll be off. You kids have fun now."

He walked away, not bothering with an elytra. Iskall snorted from where he stood, mumbling something about how 'they're not that young'.

Xisuma ignored Iskall's remark and eyed Doc and Ren. "How about you two?"

The two turned to look at each other, a silent conversation happening between them. A brief nod from Ren and Doc turned back to answer Xisuma's question. "If it's alright, we'll wait until everyone else is finished. It's a bit personal."

Understanding the implication behind those words, Xisuma turned to Mumbo and Iskall. The redstoners took notice of this. 

"We just wanted to see if there's anything we can help with. Grian's busy with not just Sahara but with the hippie commune and, well, we're worried for him, is all." Mumbo explained, albeit awkwardly. "He already has so much work on his plate. And we all know he tends to be a workaholic when it comes to his projects."

The admin felt himself turn soft when he saw the concern looks on both Mumbo and Iskall's faces. It was fortunate that within a couple of months Grian had joined the server, he already has friends looking out for him and his health. 

"I'm really glad that Grian has friends like you to watch over him," Xisuma said, smiling when he saw the shocked faces. "And yes, there is something you can help with. Look after him, will you?"

"Pfft, as if we haven't." Mumbo nudged Iskall hard on the side, causing the shorter hermit to yell and scream Swedish gibberish. Leaving the Architechs to the banter between themselves, he directed his focus to Joe and Cleo, who were quietly talking to each other.

Joe noticed Xisuma and grinned. "Ah, Xisuma! Just the man we're looking for." 

"Joe and I talked and we wanted to ask if we can help Iris with her education. Like learning English, Math, the core subjects." Cleo suggested. "Joe's pretty good with poems, so I think he can entertain Iris while teaching her, and I have... well... I know you said I don't have to-"

"And that is still true now. You were a teacher back in your homeworld, so I wouldn't expect you to give up the passion to teach quite easily." Xisuma interrupted, placing a gloved hand on top of Cleo's mess of orange hair. "Although I know how traumatizing it is... knowing what you've been through and how it affected your role as a teacher."

"Xisuma, I want to teach her. It's been so long and maybe I'm a bit rusty but I know I want to do it again and-"

"Cleo, calm down." Joe gently placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, prompting Cleo to turn to him. "I'm pretty sure you've given him enough reasons to say yes." 

"But-"

"He's not wrong, though. Of course, I'll let you teach Iris- given that Grian agrees to it since he's basically her temporary guardian." 

"We actually talked about it in Hermitville! Grian and I should come with the lessons if that's alright?" Ren called from where he was. 

Xisuma, without ever having to turn, nodded to his suggestion. "Definitely. I'll talk with you soon about the schedule, I trust that you and Joe can handle the education part?" 

A slap on a shoulder caused the admin to yelp in surprise. Realizing it was because of Joe, Xisuma playfully glared at his friendly hermit. "Oi." 

"No need to worry about that, X! Cleo and I got it all under control. Now... looks like you need to talk with Ren and Doc. They seem to have some important stuff to discuss with you."

Xisuma nodded at them. Once he bid Joe and Cleo goodbye, he turned to finally give his attention to the hybrids, two of the three who found Iris first. Mumbo and Iskall were nowhere to be found, which was oddly surprising though he did not voice it out. 

"Let's get straight to the point. I'll have to give Iris a check-up, see where her health is at and whatnot." Doc looked stressed out for some reason, his fingers drumming on the metal of his skin where he crossed his arms. "Not gonna lie, X, there's a lot of... things we need to discuss regarding her, and what we have to do in the long run. You know what I'm talking about, right?"

Xisuma huffed, knowing exactly what Doc meant. He already said it himself- Iris being in this server is an immediate red flag that something was wrong. It's not sure whether Iris will pose a serious threat to the hermits, but he knew this strange occurrence would affect the server as a whole. He needs to find Iris' code, see where it originated from and how he could fix it before anything else happens to this world. 

Not to mention he still couldn't figure out why the mobs were so aggressive during the night, too. He realized then that he has a lot on his plate, and TFC's advice echoed in the back of his mind. However, he pushed it away.

"Yea, okay. I know a place."

* * *

**DM; <Xisuma>, <Grian>**

**< Xisuma> Grian come to the shopping district. We have some things to talk about**   
**< Xisuma> and bring Iris**   
**< Grian> Omw**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: hellohello so you all see that one drawing of iris in a cute little guinea pig hoodie, yea? 
> 
> okay cool so im wondering will you all be interested in having illustrations in the story? it would definitely be better than the sketches and would be more elaborate
> 
> Or! will you be more interested in having a tumblr dedicated to this story? so i'll be having like ask boxes where you can ask iris and the other hermits (the ones in this fic, anyway) questions, and where i'll also post random hermitcraft stuff etc etc. what do you think? lemme know!


	6. Chapter 6

Of all the places they could think of, they ended up in TFC's bunker. The older hermit didn't mind, just surprised that the time frame between him bidding Xisuma and the others goodbye and them climbing down his ladder was quite short. He gladly welcomed them and allowed the three hermits to renovate one of the spare rooms into a temporary medical bay.

TFC then left, saying something along the lines of gathering some supplies about thirty minutes before Grian and Iris arrived in the bunker.

Grian held Iris in his arms, gingerly climbing down the ladder, miraculously without either killing himself or Iris. When he arrived at the temporary medical bay, he was impressed that instead of leaving it stark white like what a medical bay should look like, there was a dash of color here and there, even a rainbow rug. 

Iris squirmed when she saw Doc and Ren, probably excited to see them again. So he let her down and watched with a fond smile as Iris rushed to Ren, who happily picked her up and lightly tossed her into the air, greeting her with the same enthusiasm. 

"So, Iris, huh?" Xisuma appeared by his side. Grian nodded, watching Ren pass Iris to Doc who reluctantly accepted the child into his arms. As she tugged the frays of Doc's lab coat, she noticed the man in the mask and gave him a curious look. 

"Iris, meet Ex-Eye-Zooma! A friendly hermit." Grian introduced. Iris blinked, but as a sign to be polite, she gave Xisuma a half-hearted wave. 

Xisuma looked extremely awkward it made Grian laugh. Doc rolled his eyes at the shorter hermit and said that he'll start on the check-up and placed Iris on a somewhat-stable-iron-table. Letting Doc do his work (and also keeping an eye on him for... safety reasons), Grian, Ren and Xisuma formed a triangle and started talking.

First, Ren explained to Xisuma about the scars Iris possessed, then he brought Grian up to speed as to what was discussed and what was agreed on. Grian wasn't quite listening and from what he could remember, everyone agreed to let Iris be part of the community for a while and she would have her education. And apparently, Iris would be under the care of Grian.

Which is quite a big deal, if he was honest. He's never cared for a child before! Okay, that's a lie, but technically he's never had to take custody over a child before. It's basically as if he's becoming a dad- which he's not! He's too young for that (not to mention he's admittedly a virgin but that would be a topic for another time).

However, whenever he thought about Iris and how close they have gotten since their first meeting, he would be lying if he said he didn't feel the need to care for her and take her under his wing. In all honestly, Grian doesn't know why he became attached to Iris. It wasn't as if every time he sees a child he suddenly though "Yes I shall care for this child like a parent", like, he's not that kind of person!

Despite that, everyone seemed to agree that Grian should look after Iris 24/7.   
"If it becomes too much for you, you can always ask others for help."

Grian nodded, not quite sure how to reply to that. So he moved on, and from his inventory pulled out a shulker box and plopped it down in front of them. Opening it to allow the others to see, Xisuma visibly raised a questioning eyebrow when he saw the contents inside. 

Ren chuckled to himself when he lifted the guinea pig hoodie. He momentarily disappeared to pass the hoodie to Iris before coming back.

Xisuma took out at least three enchantment books- Power IV, Mending and Luck of the Sea respectively. There was also a book and quill stored inside the shulker boxes, as well as a handful of apples. Besides that it was just full of various building blocks which basically told Xisuma that Grian just grabbed a random shulker box from his base in hermitville and decided that it'll do.

"Okay, so this is gonna sound weird but I learned some more things about Iris. Apparently she can read Galactic." 

"Galactic?" Xisuma repeated incredulously.

"Yea! She was reading one of the enchantment books as if it was just a bed time story! But that's not the weirdest part- in fact, I need to show you something." Grian reached into the shulker box, bringing out the book that Iris drew on. 

She had added more drawings before Grian brought her to the TFC bunker, but for the most part, he ignored them for now and flipped straight to the page where Iris drew an eye of ender with Galactic words around it. He passed the book to Xisuma, who took it without another word. 

Ren leaned into Xisuma to see the page, and while Grian knows Doc was still busy checking on Iris' health, he knew he was also curious as to what the page was about. 

"So the theory about her not knowing anything seems to be wrong." Xisuma deduced, still holding onto the book with a look of sharp focus on his face. "She can read Galactic and appears to know how to write in Galactic as well. Although her spelling is... eh, it can be worked on."

"Yo, what does this say?" Ren pointed at the words. Xisuma hummed.

"I assume it means 'Home' but with the incorrect spelling, the actual word would be 'Hoem.'. Nonetheless, all of the words here is basically the same thing except the writing becomes more frantic and unreadable." Xisuma checked through the pages, chuckling slightly when he saw the three hermits featured in one page. However, his focus went back and after awhile, he closed the book.

"Grian, what happened?"

Grian rubbed the side of his neck, trying to think of words to form the sentence that would help explain to Xisuma exactly what he saw. 

"I... honestly, X, I'm not too sure. Iris was just drawing normally, y'know? Like a kid. She was drawing this village but when she got to draw the stick men outside with those stick swords, it was as if a switch was pulled or something. Like, Iris began going in a frenzy- she ended up making that eye of ender and those Galactic words. I had to stop her." The memory of seeing Iris trying to get away from him made him wince. He hoped he never had to do that again.

"But what's even weirder is that once she calmed down, it's as if she didn't even know what happened and went on as per normal." 

At that point Ren had taken the book from Xisuma, studying the drawing on his own. His tail wagged behind him ever so often.

"Mmm... She seems to like to draw a lot. I have a feeling that these drawings of hers would help us investigate what the heck is happening to our world." Possibly, but Grian doesn't quite understand why. Still, he simply nodded to Ren's theory and collected the book back, just in time for Doc to tell them that he's done. 

Iris ends up drawing again, this time on the rainbow rug. Occupied, the adults were left to talk amongst themselves about Iris. 

"Her health is at 8, which concerns me." Doc said, his clipboard held in one hand. "Even as a child, every player should have 10 hearts by default." 

"Unless of course you somehow have health problems- which only happens rarely and on special cases. Then again, Iris is a special case." They turned to look at the small child wearing the guinea pig hoodie. Xisuma let out a loud sigh. "I'll go and check on her code and see if there's anything I can do to help bring her health up. 8 hearts is really concerning and with the night cycles and the mobs, it's gonna be dangerous."

"Can you try doing that thing you did back then? Where one person can just sleep and boom! Day?" Ren asked. 

Xisuma frowned- or Grian assumed he did, with the mask and all obstructing his view. "The last time I did that, the server glitched out and nearly deleted itself in the fourth world. Also, Bdubs and Joe won't stop competing over who sleeps first. Oh, and may I remind you that more than half the hermits ended up losing their sense of time and overall became sleep-deprived?"

Doc and Ren chuckled, making Grian wonder just how crazy their previous worlds were.

"Anyway, Grian, you want to show Iris around the shopping district? Get her familiar with our... crazy builds?"

Grian, nearly lost in thought, jumped when he heard Xisuma speaking to him. He nodded his head, finding TFC's bunker a bit too claustrophobic for that moment. "Yea, definitely. We still have time today. Would she have to meet the other hermits or...?"

"That can be arranged for tomorrow but if you happen to see any hermits, feel free to say hi." 

With a nod on his head, Grian called Iris' name. Much to his joy and surprise, the young girl perked up upon being called and collected her book and quill before stumbling over to Grian. Stashing the books away into the shulker box, he noticed Doc was still staring at the clipboard. 

"Doc? You coming?" 

The creeper hybrid mutely shook his head. 

Ren and Grian gave him a funny look but decided that it was gonna be a question for another time. Iris happily held onto Ren as she was placed on top of his shoulders, leaving the temporary medical bay. 

"We'll message if anything comes up," Grian told Xisuma and Doc before leaving, calling after Ren and accusing him of kidnapping a child. 

This left the admin alone with the creeper hybrid. Xisuma let out a breath he didn't know was holding. 

"Doc? What did you find?"

Doc looked up at Xisuma with an expression that the admin had never seen him wear before. 

Fear. 

"X... I need you to check something real quick." 

* * *

"So! Which way do you want to go, Iris? What does your heart desire? Where shall the wind take us next?"

"Ren, you are talking absolute gibberish right now. Iris doesn't even know what you're saying!" Grian laughed as he watched Ren glare at him through his dark shades. Iris, ever so oblivious to their banter, hummed happily as she took her spot over Ren's shoulders. The tall(er) height amazed Iris for she can see a lot more than where she was closer to the ground.

The two friends were strolling around the shopping district with no destination in mind. Iris was surveying her surroundings with interest, probably due to the vibrant colors and huge structures of their shops that filled up the island. Whenever she made some kind of noise of excitement or approval, the hermits would then guess which shop caused the reaction and go there so Iris can have a closer inspection. 

So far, it was Grian's pickle shop that interested her. And it's not because of the pickles at all. 

"Bro, I think she likes the glasses on the pickle more than the pickle itself." Ren snickered which caused Grian to huff in slight annoyance because of course, Iris would be interested in the glasses since it's in a similar shade of red. She really likes red for some reason. 

Moving on, Grian was making idle chat with Iris, pointing and explaining to her which shop belongs to who- as well as giving a slight brief introduction to the hermit he ended up mentioning. It was honestly weird talking knowing well that the other won't reply, but they didn't mind. In fact, it helped keep the boredom at bay as well as fill up the silence between them. 

Iris, who was now being held by Ren on the arms, was dropping her head every now and then on Ren's shoulder. She yawned, and it was clear that the girl was exhausted. Still, Iris remained awake and even through her half-awake state, she listened to Grian talk. 

"She's tuckered out." Ren grinned, rubbing the smaller figure's back. The comforting touch caused Iris to yawn loudly again, pressing her face closer to Ren's shoulder. The soft scene made Grian's heart melt. 

"Mhm. Maybe we should just move the introductions to tomorrow and have a nap for the rest of the day." 

"Y'know what? A nap sounds freaking wonderful right now. What do you say, Iris? Do you feel like resting your little head on a soft pillow and be rolled into a silky blanket burrito?" Iris didn't answer or showed no sign that she had heard Ren. It only took the hermits a minute to realize that Iris had fallen into a deep sleep, snuggling close to Ren's body. 

"She likes you." Grian teased. Ren only laughed, his cheeks turning into a soft shade of pink. They walked around the empty shopping district for a while more until they decided to head over to the nearest nether portal to go to Grian's base. 

On the way there, they stumbled upon TFC, who was carrying a shulker box full of supplies. He seemed surprise to see them again within a short period of time, but he's more surprised to see Iris, peacefully napping in Ren's arms.

"Afternoon, gentlemen. This must be Iris." TFC chuckled when he saw Iris stirring, before slowly opening her eyes. Still half-dazed, she barely even noticed the new hermit and softly groaned. It seems like she doesn't like being woken up from her nap. It didn't take that long before she fell back asleep.

Ren adjusted his hold on Iris, giving TFC a wide grin. "Hey, man! And yep! The one and only- isn't she the cutest? Especially with the guinea pig hoodie! She looks like a guinea pig!"

Grian had to look away when TFC looked at him, his face flushing. Ren really did not have to say that, especially since it's a well-known fact that Grian is the only one with a guinea pig service. 

Also, Ren showing affection to Iris was too cute.

TFC laughed, nearly dropping his shulker box. The laugh finally woke Iris up, and she let out some murmuring as she lifted her head from Ren's shoulders, bringing a hand up to rub her tired eyes. She looked mildly annoyed, if not confused with all the ruckus happening. 

"She's a cutie for sure. Heya, Iris. The name's TinFoilChef, but most call me TFC." TFC introduced, even struck a free hand out for good measures. Iris stared at the offered hand with mild confusion, until she reached out to grab his thumb. 

"Good enough. I hope you boys are taking good care of her- oh, and when you visit the technicians, watch out for their redstone, alright? Sometimes the dust particles are still around and can be poisonous to little Iris here."

The fact that redstone was apparently poisonous shocked Grian. Since when was that ever mentioned? Never, he remembered. Grian had his own share of redstone and not once did he feel the effects of poisoning in his system. With Ren's bewilderment expression, Grian can safely say he's not alone.

TFC laughed at their expressions. "Ah, don't worry too much! Though I'm still serious about the redstone poisoning, I reckon your redstone-smart friends didn't tell you?"

"Uh, no, I don't think so."

"Well, it's not as common. But with Iris being so young you can't be too careful. If you didn't know, you can get redstone poisoning from inhaling or for some reason swallowing too many redstone dusts in your system. You're gonna have one hell of a coughing fit and even a high fever and overall it's not a good experience. Frankly, I had my few share of redstone poisoning and it's not fun. Knowing your fellow hermits, I know they also experienced redstone poisoning at some point."

Grian and Ren gave each other uneasy looks. "But as long as Iris doesn't get too much redstone in her system, she's fine, right?"

"As fine as a bird soaring through the sky. Breathing normally around redstone is also fine- just don't let her eat any."

"Like we would ever!"

The offending gasp from Ren made Iris burped unexpectedly. TFC laughed once more and bid the two hermits goodbye. 

"Mm...Hm?" 

"Ah, sorry for waking you, Iris." Ren softly apologized, brushing a strand of white hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. Iris hummed in reply, letting out a yawn while doing so. Despite her incredibly short nap, she seemed more awake than before and had resumed with surveying the brightly colored stores around her.

"I wonder who else we're gonna meet." Grian chuckled, petting Iris' head which was covered by the guinea pig hood. Ren shrugged.

"Not quite sure, my man. When X was finished, everyone practically dispersed into wherever! Like, I swear I saw Cub and Scar fussing over something, nearly crashing into the G-Team base itself. It was pretty funny, but it looked like everyone is getting themselves ready to meet Iris."

"For what?"

"Dunno, good first impressions?" 

A shrill cry cut through their conversation, shocking Grian and Ren into silence. Even Iris tensed up at the noise and curled herself closer to the dog hybrid. It didn't take long for either hermit to find out the source of the noise- especially when there are two more sets of voices following after the first.

It all happened in a blur, but Grian caught sight of the brown-cardigan wearing blonde crashing into Tango's rocket shop (which had a gaping hole at the top from a lightning strike last night). Two figures- one, the owner store adorning dark red horns over goldish-blonde hair and the other, probably the only male hermit to wear knee-length shorts and still look dashing in them, landed by their fellow hermit with worried cries. 

Grian and Ren watched with slight astonishment as Impulse helped Zedaph up to his feet, his head slightly waving in circles from the crash. 

"We told you to check your elytra, Zed! Geez, you could've killed yourself!" Impulse scolded, shoving golden carrots into Zedaph's mouth, much to his protests. Tango rolled his eyes at his friends' antics, annoyed but nonetheless relieved. However, when he turned and noticed the two hermits with the newly-arrived child, Tango turned pale. 

"Oh shoot. Uh- Is it happening right now? Like, now? Introductions?" Tango, in a panicked tone, began rambling. When Impulse and Zedaph noticed the other hermits, they also started acting a bit aloof, apparently not expecting to meet with the child so soon. Though out of all of them, Zedaph seemed to have a much more collected head and casually walked over to Iris.

The child saw the strangers coming and pressed herself closer to Ren (who nearly toppled over from the shifting of weight).

"Hello! My name is Zedaph. Welcome to our chaotic community of a family. Please don't mind my friends behind me- they are dunces." 

Tango and Impulse yelled out protested when they heard Zedaph. Misinterpreting the sounds as being displeased or negative, Iris whimpered. Grian noticed the sound first and glared at the other two that had yet to move from their spot. 

"Come on, guys. You're supposed to make her feel welcome here!" Grian whined, which somehow managed to make Iris giggle (though it was only felt through the vibrations on Ren's shoulder).

Tango and Impulse walked over to either side of Zedaph, looking at Iris with curiosity but also with... loss. Grian found it funny that they are absolutely clueless on how to act towards a child. 

"Uh, my name's Tango. This is my bud Impulse." 

Ren waved at them. Iris followed his movement. 

"Oh my god, she's so cute."

"I know right???"

While Impulse and Zedaph were having their little cuteness overload, Grian noticed that Iris and Tango were looking at each other with interest. He thought it was because of the fact that Tango was covered in red but he realized that there was something more to it.

What that something was, he wasn't sure. But whatever Tango has, it certainly caught Iris' interest at best. 

"So, what are you guys up to?" Ren asked as a way to start a conversation. Impulse let out an 'oh!' as if remembering the main reason why they flew to the shopping district. 

"The three of us butted heads together to see what we can do to like, make a good first impression or somewhere along those lines-" Ren gave Grian a knowing look, causing the builder to roll his eyes playfully. "-and like, Tango wanted to represent the Nether- at least his homeworld, to Iris. Zed and I thought it would be cool if we could prepare a redstone contraption that seemed simple but would impress her." 

"That's actually a really nice idea. Maybe we can get her hooked into building and redstoning, like what most of us do." Grian said, smiling at the thought of Iris making huge projects like them someday. It was honestly far-fetched, but the thought was... pretty amazing.

"Yea, but then we remember Iskall saying how Tango's rocket shop got hit and all, so we figured, hey! Let's swing by the shopping district to fix up the roof! But then Zedaph forgot to check his damn elytra and moments before reaching the shop, it failed! Luckily the impact somehow didn't kill him straight but, geez!" 

"I'm still here!"

Impulse and Zedaph began bickering in the background, leaving Tango to sigh and give his attention to his fellow friends.

"Oh yea, Stress' recovering pretty well. I saw her during the meet-up and she looked pretty much normal. I also saw False leading her back to her base."

"That's good to hear." Ren sighed, relieved that his friend is okay. "She was really out of it back in the cave. Nearly gave us a heart attack with how serious her condition was."

Tango nodded, agreeing. "Yea... I heard it was pretty bad. Well, it was nice meeting Iris! We'll leave you all be for now- hey, Zed! Impulse!" 

Grian chuckled to himself as he saw Tango ran over to Zedaph and Impulse, who had apparently decided to bring their own sets of diamond swords into their bickering. Though, while the entire scene was hilarious, Grian noticed Iris tensing up at the sight of those enchanted swords. 

He tugged on Ren's sleeve. Somehow getting the message, the two quietly leave the trio on their own, moving on to other parts of the shopping district that they haven't seen yet.

"That was pretty weird, but it woke Iris up," Ren said. Grian wordlessly picked the girl from Ren, giving the other man a break as he held Iris in his arms. Iris settled into her new position quite easily, and tucked her head on the crook of his neck, her eyes still surveying the area around them. 

"Yep. Let's hope the other hermits are more prepared than those three." Grian laughed to himself, the two somehow following the pathway to Concorp. 

Now, if only Grian had somehow insisted himself that a nap sounded better. Because despite Grian's hopeful tone, the other hermits, were in fact, not prepared. 

But can you blame them? A child did came out of nowhere, after all. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me: so yea imma now finally start writing iris interacting w the hermits  
> my brain: pLOT   
> me: wh  
> brain: P L O T
> 
> also i apologize for the shorter chapter ! hope yall r staying safe during these terrible times

It was well-known within the server that Sahara and Concorp were rivals (don't even get him started on IDEA), and even though they often butted heads over who gets the most diamonds and stocks and everything that somehow involved having to do with business, they still have to agree that the infrastructure they have created for their respective companies were outstanding. 

Even at the entrance, Grian was impressed. He had seen Concorp a few times now, even pranked the entire place by filling it up with sand, yet even so it still amazed Grian that both Scar and Cub built all of these by themselves. Not to mention how expensive some of those blocks were.

Iris looked pretty awe-struck with the amount of stuff Concorp had. (And Grian won't admit it, but he felt a tiny bit jealous that Iris was liking his rival before she even saw Sahara). They walked around for a while, finding a large fountain at the middle. 

Grian had put Iris down so she can play by the flower beds. Watching her, Grian sighed, stretching his arms over his head. It was then he realized just how sore and tired he felt. 

"It really feels like we're parents." Ren stated, arms crossed in front of him as he watched over Iris, delicately touching the petals with her small hands. "Although... I can't help but think you have a lot of experience with kids, my man. Mind sharing me you're secrets?"

"Ah, I'm mostly doing what I feel is right." Slightly bashful, Grian chuckled to hide the reddening cheeks. "But I guess you can say that. It's... It's from my homeworld."

The frown that settled on Grian's lips caused Ren to scrunch his eyebrows up in worry, ears perked above his head in attention. 

"Aw man, did I hit a sore spot?" 

Grian shook his head. "No, no you didn't. It's not really something I usually talk about but, uh, in my homeworld, I have a lot of... extended families." 

Ren remained quiet, which Grian took as a sign to continue. "When I first spawned, there was this old man watching over me and a bunch of other kids. Where I stayed, it's almost like an orphanage but not really because everyone treated each other like family. When I got older, I have to look after the younger kids until I was old enough to leave my homeworld." 

"Guess you picked up some skills, eh? Impressive. I wished I had an extended family." Ren smiled sadly. Grian watched Ren's expression carefully, wondering what Ren's homeworld was like. 

"How about you then, Mr. Ren? What was your homeworld like?" 

It was Ren's turn to frown, but he masked the downed look with a smile of his own. 

"I was spawned in a family full of other dog hybrids like myself, but there were... complications. I guess years of discrimination in my homeworld has changed how the pack treated human players because let me tell you, it wasn't the best time. Luckily, I managed to leave my homeworld and stumbled into another world where I met..." He trailed off, a pained-look on Ren's expression, even through his shades. 

Grian reached out to place a hand on Ren's shoulder. "I shouldn't have asked, sorry."

"No, no... It's fine. I jumped through a lot of worlds, trying to find a place to call home. There were many times where I thought I found the perfect world, but eventually it just... didn't. When Xisuma invited me, I thought I wasn't gonna last either but yet I feel like I belong here, y'know? I met so many great people, made friends, awesome memories, and now a sweet child to look after!"

Grian let out a small chuckle, his worries lessening when he saw Ren acting as himself again. Sure, Ren seemed pretty down when he revealed a part of his past but it won't stop him from being positive in the end. He's always had that charm on him. 

Iris scurried over to where the hermits were standing, a mixture of confusion and fear found all over her face as she jumped on her toes, arms stretched towards Ren. The hybrid kneeled down to pick Iris up in her arms, worried when Iris wrapped herself closer to him.

Grian looked up when he heard the faint sound of rockets, and smiled when he saw Cub and Scar flying over to them.

"It's okay, little tulip, it's just the other hermits." Ren softly said as an attempt to calm the somewhat agitated child down. Despite that, Iris remained fearful and twitched when Cub and Scar landed a few feet away from them. 

"Hey, Grian, Ren!" Scar happily greeted arms opening. Grian grinned and readily exchanged a hug with his cowboy friend. 

"Scar! Cub! I hope we didn't interrupt anything." 

Cub waved a dismissive hand away that looked slightly suspicious. "Nah, we just did some stock check."

The mention of stock made Grian narrow his eyes at his competitors. Scar and Cub did the same, but a moment later they began laughing. 

"Anyway, meet Iris! She liked the flowers, by the way." It took Grian a moment but he realized just how nervous Iris looked as she glanced over the two newcomers before looking away. Ren, slightly lost and unsure of why Iris was acting this way, gave them a sheepish grin and a nervous laugh. 

"That, uh, that didn't happen before." 

"Oh, is Iris okay? I don't appear scary with my scars, right?" Scar asked, pointing at himself while doing so (well, more like his scarred face). 

Grian slowly shook his head, not understanding Iris' feelings at the moment. "No... I mean, she's pretty okay with Doc around and earlier in the morning she didn't mind seeing Cleo's stitches and... uh... gory parts. I doubt scars would scare her." 

Iris whimpered, causing Scar and Cub to step back a tiny bit. An expression of hurt flashed across Scar's face when he saw Iris effectively trying to tune them out. Cub remained silent, his eyebrows scrunched up, as if trying to figure out the problem.

"I think we'll meet up again another time, uh, do you happen to know anyone else that's still in the shopping district?" Grian was thankful for Ren to speak up despite the awkward tension happening between them.

That was when Cub finally spoke, though his voice was even as if forcing himself to talk calmly and monotonously. "No, not that we saw anyone else in the district. I think they all went back to their respective bases or farms."

"Thank you! We'll see you soon, bye!" Carrying Iris with one arm, Ren used his free hand to hold onto Grian's sleeve to drag him to the nearest nether portal. Before they barely went three blocks away, Grian faintly heard Scar whispering to Cub, worriedly.

"Does... Does she know?"

* * *

"Oh, DEAR LORD-" 

"SORRY!!" 

Grian and Ren peered down through the gaping hole of one of their tunnels, leading straight down to a large lava pit. From down below, they could hear rockets firing and a figure belonging to one of their mob hybrids soaring through the humid air. 

Jevin was zipping around, somewhat losing control of his elytra. 

Grian let out a painful 'ooh' when he saw the elytra failing, causing Jevin to fall and go straight down to the lava.

Nearby, Iris was staring at a stray pig man who managed to get in the tunnels, ignoring Ren's comment about how 'They should really stop blowing up the holes around here'.

* * *

"Hey! How're you guys doing? Good? Great!" 

Grian ignored how panicked Bdubs looked, too busy staring at the forest that was set ablaze behind him, orange fiery flames taking over the greenery and dark grey smoke filling up the sky. 

"... Do we want to know?" 

"BUBBLES! I CAN'T FIND THE BUCKETS!" 

Keralis' voice was heard somewhere behind Grian and, who was too busy covering his face with his hand. Ren was giggling over Iris swinging an empty metal bucket around.

* * *

"You guys came too early, goodness! I didn't even finish cleaning up my base!" False sighed, exasperated when she saw Grian and Ren enter her base without a care in the world. 

Ren wearily stared at the large assortment of swords made of different materials scattered across the floors.

Luckily, they didn't have to worry about Iris touching them since she was too busy petting the tabby cats by the entrance.

* * *

By the time they have finished introducing Iris to False... and her cats, the sun was already setting. Grian frowned when he saw the sky turning orange, telling him that he should go back to his base to sleep through the night.

"Okay, quick check, who have Iris not met yet?" 

Grian did a mental count. "Well, technically she met everyone at some point, but we didn't fully introduce Mumbo, Iskall, Stress, Cleo and Joe. Wels is... well, he'll be the only one left. and Biffa if we're counting him, but he left weeks ago. Wels also left, didn't he? I saw the message." 

Ren nodded. For context sake, Grian had checked his communicator after speaking to Bdubs and Keralis, realizing that Wels had left the server after saying that he needed to go back to his homeworld for a while. It was out of a blue, but Grian knows Wels has a family in his homeworld he would want to check to. 

"He's done it a couple of times by now. Knowing him he'll be back in about... three days, give or take." 

The ocean waves filled the silence between them. After spending the entire afternoon trying to find the rest of the hermits, Iris was unconscious in Ren's arms. They went back to Grian's base in silence, not bothering to use the bubble elevator and had temporarily set up a small room for Iris to sleep in (which was really one of the white pillars that was currently not filled to the brim by mobs). Ensuring that Iris was safe and sound in one of Grian's spare beds, Ren had asked if they could walk around the ring of his base for a while, just the two of them.

Grian agreed. 

"So, what's it like being a dad?" 

"I don't think it'll be like that." Grian laughed nervously, still finding the title to daunting to uphold. "A guardian would be much more preferable. But from what I think about having to care for Iris? It's not that bad... I might even get used to it." 

"Parenting?"

Grian shrugged as an agreement. "Yea, if that's what you call it."

Ren laughed- it didn't sound like one, not fully anyway, but Ren did look amused.

Grian narrowed at his eyes at him, confused. The waves crashed and Grian looked at the setting sun as they walked around the large ring pathway that surrounded his base. 

"Sorry, sorry... I just, well, I forgot how young you are." 

"I hardly think 26 is young."

"It is when you have a child to look after."

Ren does have a point.

But that doesn't mean Grian has to like it. He had already dedicated in caring for Iris for as long as he has to, even though he's schedule was practically bursting from the number of projects he has. For example, the hippie commune, even that one mansion he really just wanted to get it over with... 

Oh, and all the grinding sessions, too. His time was cut short with all the night cycles acting weird and-

Ah, he now sees what Ren meant.

"I think I can handle it," Grian said in the end, confident. "Like, I can multi-task! Psh, no problem."

Ren gave him a worrying look but decided not to say anything anymore. Maybe another time, today was pretty hectic after all. Sleeping sounds pretty good right now... 

"Oh, quick question, did you finally light up the rest of your base to prevent unnecessary mob spawning?"

The question made Grian gasped, feigning offense over the implication that Grian wasn't responsible enough to spawn-proof his own base. 

"Of course! Why wouldn't I?"

Before Ren could respond, both of their communicators began to rapidly beep from oncoming messages.

**< TangoTek> GUYS CLOSE YOUR PIRTALS N OW**   
**< joehillssays> what?**   
**< TangoTek> DO IT**   
**TangoTek was burnt to a crisp while fighting a Zombie Pigman**   
**< ImpulseSV> u oka**   
**ImpulseSV was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**Zedaph was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**TangoTek was slain by Zombie Pigman**

Their communicators continued to vibrate more from the ongoing messages, but Grian was distracted when he heard various degrees of noises coming from the lower part of his base. With his face turning pale, the two hermits flew over to the edge of the entrance, peering down as the zombified pigs began to materialize from the purple portal. 

"The portal- Grian, the portal!" 

The portal. They have to close it. 

_Iris._

Oh, god. Iris!

"What do we-- Grian?!" Ren barely noticed Grian pushing himself forward until he saw the flash of his red sweater heading straight for the threat in his base. The pigmen noticed the hermit and began making horrific noises as they brought their golden swords up in the air, running after Grian like a pack of wolves desperate for its prey. 

Ren exhaled through his nose, knowing it's a risk and also idiotic. But he's not gonna let Grian die right in front of him. Within seconds, he was following Grian's trail, his diamond sword already pulled from his inventory as the sword immediately pierced through the rotten skin of the pigman. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> comments: what did doc find! im worried! tELL US  
> me: so anyway theyre all in danger now


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so this chapter it quite short and despite it being 'revealing', its lowkey underwhelming so i apologize for that. this covid 19 and switching to online classes is screwing my head a bit. anYWAY read the end notes for an important qn

When Doc first arrived in the server, Xisuma had offered him an upgrade to his mechanical eye. Call it a 'welcoming gift' if you will, but the features Xisuma had added into the mechanical parts of his brain were... interesting, to say the least.

In fact, Doc still hadn't understood the reasons for the features. Iris' arrival, however, had prompted him in using those upgraded features. 

One of those features was allowing him to see the codes of everything.

Okay, maybe not everything, but if Doc turned on certain settings, he would be able to see codes of every player right in his vision. Something similar to Xisuma checking on the servers' codes and whatnot, but more simplistic and honestly kind of useless for daily mundane tasks. 

However, when he turned on that particular setting, rows, and rows of numbers and coding filled in one of the corners, Iris right in his line of sight. It automatically picks up the being and started scanning within milliseconds.

But... something was off. 

Coding and programming was not what everyone can understand. Only admins could truly grasp the concept of such universal language within ones and zeroes. But even then, Doc had spent his time years before, learning and understanding certain codes and programs. He gave up on it, but muscle memory caused him to double-check on the coding that belonged to Iris. 

Everyone's codes were different, showing their unique character and player accounts within the worlds. While that was the case, the coding themselves still have to follow a certain program that allowed them to be players, to begin with. From there, all of the complicated stuff of coding with conscious and whatever the hell he failed to understand began to take shape. Doc had remembered the layout of that program, and he remembered the times when he would randomly check on his friends' codes for fun. They were different, yes, but they were formatted the same way. 

Iris was not. 

Which confused and actually scared Doc. He couldn't recognize the coding Iris had. He couldn't understand anything about her. 

So he moved on from the technical stuff and focused on the ones he could understand. Attack damage was... almost none-existant, standing at 0.5 of damage. Iris has 8 hearts in total, which concerned him. 

Everything about Iris concerned him.

"Doc? Are you there?"

Doc let out a small gasp of surprise when he remembered where he was. Lost in his own thoughts, he forgot he asked Xisuma a question. The admin was giving him a worried look. 

"Doc?"

"I'm fine. Just thinkin'... Check on Iris' code for me, yea? There's something different about it but I can't really tell what it was." 

The fact that Iris' code was different made Xisuma uneasy, but he gave Doc a determined nod before opening up the panels in front of him again. Doc watched, letting Xisuma zoom through almost every file until he came upon the file that housed all the player codes. 

Xisuma skimmed through the player codes. Doc caught Grian and Mumbo's names on the files.

The panel stopped moving. Xisuma repeated his action.

Again.

And again. 

"That's... odd," Xisuma said, leaving the file section. "Iris' isn't part of the player codes." 

Iris isn't- what? 

"Wait, what does that mean? X? What do you mean by she isn't part of the player codes?" 

Xisuma turned to Doc, stressed and confused covering his entire expression. "I mean she..." He trailed off, letting out a frustrated huff while doing so. He turned back to the panels and started scanning through, but with less focus and more frantic. "I don't want to make assumptions but..." 

It took a while, but it eventually clicked. 

"Are you saying... Iris isn't a player?"

Xisuma suddenly stopped, shoulders shaking as those words left Doc's mouth. 

"... I'm not gonna make an assumption." 

Emotion took over Doc when he heard Xisuma's monotone voice. It was a stark contrast to what he was feeling just minutes ago, he almost wanted to laugh. But he couldn't, because the anger suddenly swelling inside of him began to burst. And he's not afraid to let it out. 

"X. You know the answer, don't you?"

"Doc-" 

"Iris isn't a player! She's not- She's not like us- It's right there in front of you- She's not even part of the player files-!" Doc was rambling, raging from an unknown source. Was it because Xisuma was lying to himself? Or because Iris wasn't even like them? 

It made his heart hurt, chest tightening to the point he was having difficulties just breathing. Why was he so upset? Iris is just Iris- nothing more than that. She's just a child and he's angry. 

Why? Why, why, why, why? 

Grian and Ren. They've gotten so close to Iris within a short amount of time, and even Doc had to admit he grew some kind of fondness towards the girl. What would they think when they heard that Iris wasn't a player? That she's just some NPC following a code reacting to everything around her? That her happiness was a fraud? Scripted, right from the very start? 

"X why can't you-"

"Stop." 

Xisuma cut him off. Doc looked up, guilt slowly rising from his chest when he saw the tear tracks through the purple visor of Xisuma's helmet. 

"Just... Why are you upset about this, Doc?" He laughed. It didn't sound so happy. "Why does it matter if Iris was a player or not?" 

"I... I don't know." He truly doesn't. Not knowing anything made Doc angry with himself. He wasn't angry at Xisuma or at Iris, no. He was just angry that he doesn't understand anything. 

And for some reason, that made the situation worst than before. 

Still lost in his blinded anger, Doc barely noticed Xisuma taking off his helmet, showing the 'X' shaped scar that took up his right side, one of the lines crossing over his eye which was in a pale purple color, a contrast to the dark brown on his left side. Xisuma looked sad, but he smiled anyway. 

"Doc, you can't deny that you felt some affection towards Iris, yes?" 

Doc huffed. "I ain't denying that." 

"So why be angry over Iris not being the same as you? Besides, she just got here today."

Right. So many things happened, he forgot that they found Iris only a couple of hours ago. 

"... I'm just confused about all of this, X." He confessed, finally. "Nothing makes sense. I don't want to hurt the other hermits."e

Xisuma placed a comforting hand on Doc's shoulder. "Me too, Doc. But we'll figure it out, okay? As well as the night cycles and the stupid mobs."

The hand left Doc's shoulder. The creeper hybrid watched Xisuma as he resumed his work, the tension that happened between them disappearing almost immediately. 

"X?"

"Hm?"

"Let's go eat something. I'm starving."

* * *

The trident was pulled out from the corpse, the zombified pig soon puffing away into ashes when it died. Doc breathed heavily, leaning onto his weapon as he turned his head to see Xisuma breaking his nether portal, preventing any more Zombie Pigmans to come through. 

The remaining mobs began to puff away, giving the two hermits time to breathe and process the situation. 

**ImpulseSV was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**Zedaph was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**TangoTek was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**Iskall85 was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**< BdoubleO100> Hermitville is invaded! I repeat hermitville is invaded!**   
**< joehillssays> so is the shopping district**   
**MumboJumbo was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**< Falsesymmetry> everyone go to a high place! they made be strong but theyre still brainless**   
**< TinFoilchef> climbing a ladder, sure. climbing down? theyre pretty smart at that.**   
**TinFoilchef was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**< Stressmonster101> im safe in my castle. portals destroyed**   
**< ZombieCleo> stay there! i'll come and get you!**   
**< Stressmonster101> no go to the others and help them. wheres Iris?**

"She's with Grian and Ren, right? Did they break their portals?"

Xisuma didn't reply, too busy typing something on his communicator.

**< Xisuma> Ren grian are you okay? **   
**< iJevin> x whats happening man??? is it some glitch??**   
**< Xisuma> i dont know. im working on it**

"Doc, I'm gonna teleport you to Grian, are you okay with that?" 

"Wh- teleport-? Wait, what are you gonna do?" Doc noticed the panels appearing in front of Xisuma, another panel that acted as a keyboard being furiously typed by the admin. He looked distressed as he scoured through the codes of their server. 

"I'm gonna find and stop the glitch that made the pigmen so hostile. Worse comes to worst, I'd have to temporarily delete it as a whole chunk, which would just make the server act weird as it already is. It's unsafe so I'm holding that option until later- What I'm more worried about is Iris." 

Doc didn't get it at first, but a moment later his eyes went wide with shock. 

"Fuck. They don't know about Iris being an NPC."

And if Iris dies...

She won't respawn. 

"Grian and Ren aren't responding. They're likely busy fending off the zombie pigmen to close the portal properly, which means Iris is left vulnerable. I don't know about you, Doc, but I don't think a child dying today is what everyone needs." 

Doc silently agreed with that. "Okay. Okay... Take care of yourself, alright?" 

"You too, my friend."

Doc didn't get to see Xisuma type something on his keyboard that would send him to Grian. He could only feel the sudden lurch on his stomach, and the weightless feeling on his body, as if he was floating underwater. Or suspended in mid-air. 

He also couldn't breathe.

But those feelings immediately disappeared, instead, his senses were overloaded from the sounds of pigman oinking away and the clashes of swords. His eyes also got momentarily blinded by the number of sea lanterns, but the pink that covered his vision pushed him to lurch the trident forward. 

The pigmen, being held up by the trident's sharp ends, turned to ashes as it died. Doc's focus came back, and soon he was fighting the pigman surrounding him from all sides. 

"Doc!"

Ren came out of nowhere, killing off a pigman that was behind him. Back-to-back with his friend, the duo effortlessly fought off the pigman that seemed to be endless. The lack of sleep was getting to Doc, so he only depended on his survival instincts and his adrenaline to keep him fighting. 

"I got it!" There was an explosion, where the large nether portal was. The purple portal itself had been destroyed, courtesy of Grian who had apparently decided to use a TNT. So that's one problem down, they still have to fend off the remaining pigman. 

Thankfully, with all of their combined strength, they cleared out the bottom floor of Grian's base without any more difficulty. Various gold nuggets and bars remained on the floor as they all catch their breaths. The smell of blood, ash, and metal hung in the air. But they were safe now. 

"I... Thanks for coming, Doc." Grian managed to say before erupting in a series of coughs and heavy breathing. Ren rubbed Grian's back in sympathy. "Iris... She's..."

Doc looked over to where Grian was pointing. Behind the mess of shulker boxes and chests (some of which were unfortunate enough to be caught in the explosion), Doc noticed a little head pointing out from a small opening in the pillar. 

Seeing as it was safe, Iris came out from her hiding spot and ran over to the hermits. She ran straight for Grian and wrapped her small arms around his waist. Grian, still wheezing, placed a shaky hand on top of Iris' head, stroking it back and forth to calm her down. 

"It's okay, little tulip, we're safe now. Doc came and save us." Ren reassured, pointing to Doc when he said his name. Iris turned her attention to the creeper hybrid, who stood still out of sheer awkwardness from the sudden attention. Doc didn't get to say anything, forcing himself to not jump when Iris ran over to him to hug his legs together. 

"Uh... hey, kid." Doc hesitantly pat her head with his living hand. Iris whined, pressing herself closer to the older hermit. Apparently she was still shaken up from the sudden horde of zombie pigmen just minutes ago.

When Ren and Grian finally caught their breaths, the trio looked at the giant obsidian portal. The explosion that broke the nether portal itself was apparently placed nearby the storage clutter, because there were huge stacks of various resources and items lying on the floor, not to mention a few blocks have been destroyed into chunks from the explosion.   
"Doc, what happened? Is Xisuma okay?" Ren asked, worried. 

Doc ran a hand through his hair, sighing deeply. "X... is okay. He's working out the problem with the pigmen right now." 

Grian made a displeased look when he turned on his communicator. "The others aren't doing so good." 

**Zedaph was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**Falsesymmetry was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**< TangotTek> I got your stuff! **   
**joehillssays was slain by Zombie Pigman**   
**< ZombieCleo> Is there actually anyone whose safe??? **   
**< MumboJumbo> Iskall and I are in my base. Got a couple of unfortunate deaths but we got the portal closed. iskall is freaking out**   
**< Stressmonster101> calm him down! **   
**< Grian> Ren doc and i are in my base. iris is safe. mumbo iskall, you can fly over**   
**< MumboJumbo> on our way**   
**Zedaph was slain by Zombie Pigman**

"Zedaph is not having a good day." Ren joked, an attempt to lighten up their mood. It failed miserably, and it evident when no one reacted to Ren's joke and his ears drooped slightly.

  
The sound of rockets spamming interrupted their silence, and they all watched in amusement as both Mumbo and Iskall dove through the entrance of the tower with ease and crash into Grian's not so organized storage system. 

Iris looked worried but besides that didn't react much. 

"You two okay?" Grian helped his friends up by grabbing both of their hands, hauling them up with relative ease despite his shorter height. Mumbo sighed, straightening his white button-up. Doc the realized that Mumbo wasn't wearing his usual black blazer, and his slicked black hair was now a bit of a mess.

"Dying repeatedly to a bunch of pigman wasn't fun," Mumbo grumbled, fixing his loose tie with an annoyed look on his face. "But besides that, we're okay."

"What the heck is going on??" Iskall questioned loudly. "Our server's acting like- like a- it's just so weird! First the night cycles, then the sudden hostility of the mobs, Iris' sudden appearance- no offense to her, and now the pigmen! Like, what the heck is happening?!" 

Doc understood Iskall's frustrations a bit too well. So well, he nearly forgotten that out of everyone he's with right now, he is the only one who truly knew about Iris being an NPC. 

And while he's considering telling them about that information... Doc couldn't. If it was any other day, he would gladly tell them of this ground-breaking news but the weight of their situation finally came crashing down in Doc's world. 

Looking over at Grian and Ren, he realized just how tired they looked. Of course, if it was any other day he would've assumed they stayed up late to do their personal projects- it was a norm in their world, after all. But they don't just look tired... they look exhausted, in the brink of passing out. Similar to Xisuma, in a way.

He turned his attention to the newcomers, noticing their concerned and confused looks. Doc couldn't help but pity those two. 

Then he looked down at Iris, who was still clinging into his pants like it was the only thing she can touch. Iris was looking between her two other guardians and the redstoners, worry etched on her face, unable to understand the situation. 

Doc sighed, though the breath he let out ended up being shaky. He slowly caressed Iris' hair.   
Their communicators beeped. 

**< Xisuma> Gonna go for Plan B**   
**< Xisuma> I suggest sleeping through this one**

"This is gonna be a big one, then," Ren mumbled out loud, seeing the message. Doc knew what Ren meant by that. Whenever Xisuma changes the codes of the server, it usually tends to glitch or lag for a couple of hours. Nothing too drastic, since Xisuma always knew how to fix it. (Though he's not sure how deleting an entire mob can be fixable). Xisuma had advised before to sleep through the glitch and lag since the changes usually happen at night. 

"Yea... Grian, I don't suppose you have any extra beds lying around, don't you?" 

"Hm? Yea, I think I have a couple in my storage." Grian really was tired since his eyes kept on drooping. Doc felt sorry for the guy.

"I'll help you look. Ren? Look after Iris, will you?"

Iris made some noise of protest as Ren unlatched her away from the creeper hybrid, though later didn't resist as she easily fell back to sleep on Ren's shoulder.  
  
Mumbo and Iskall gave Doc a funny look, making the taller cyborg glare at them.

"What? Never seen me with a kid, before?" 

"... Yes?" 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Doc: doesnt tell them that iris is an npc  
> me: wow this has angst potential
> 
> anyway i has an important question. i asked this a few chapters ago when i edited it but i shall ask again since not many have seen it apparently-
> 
> is anyone interested if i were to make an ask-blog like thingie for this book? so you're able to interact/ask with all the hermits and iris and yknow, have fun? i think its a cool idea but i want you're insight on it


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EXCITED ANNOUNCEMTTTT AT THE END OF NOOOTES  
> yes, i know its a short chapter and i promise u the next chapter will be longer! but pls dont miss out the end notes!!!

The sun had risen up a couple of hours later.

Many hermits still remained in their shelters. They could lie and say that they were just having a day-off but in reality they just... overslept. They all have their own reasons for their lack of sleep, but for the first time in a while, it was pretty peaceful. 

In Grian's futuristic base, the five hermits plus a child had placed their beds close to one another. Iskall, taking most of the space by laying his limbs in a star-shaped formation, barely interrupted Mumbo who somehow ended up cuddling Grian in his arms, with Grian drooling slightly. Ren was at his side, one arm around Iris who gripped onto Doc's arm who was at the other end of their shared bed. 

The other hermits were also sound asleep. Impulse, Zedaph and Tango shared one blanket as they squished into two beds, deciding that a sleep sounds good after repeatedly being killed by a horde of Pigman. Jevin was also asleep, so was False. Even Stress, in her strangely freezing castle. No one actually knew if Xisuma slept, but it was safe to say that he managed to fix the pigman problem during the night. 

Some hermits have woken up by then, attending to their morning routines. 

Joe Hills was one such hermit.

The golden rays of the late morning sun had shone down from the trapdoors. Joe, still half-dazed from his slumber, barely remembered where he was or what he was doing the night before. The one thing he noticed first upon waking up was the lack of body that settled beside him during the night. The sight of the empty bed made Joe's worry spike, waking him up almost immediately. However, the gentle rocking of the ship reminded him of where he was, and Joe calmed himself down. 

Last night was crazy, to put it simply. He was with Cleo, discussing with her about Iris' schedule when pigman started warping out from the nether portals in increasing numbers. Joe had decided to break the portal in the shopping district while Cleo focused on her pirate district. He nearly got killed more than a handful of times (and died once, surprisingly), and it took way longer than it should, but Joe managed to break the nether portal. With TFC and Jevin, they cleared off the remaining pigmen. A couple of minutes later Xisuma had vaguely mentioned that he'll make some changes to the server, which basically tells them that he'll handle the problem and they should all be asleep. 

Joe, knowing he wasn't able to do much for the night, had came back to Cleo's ship. She offered him a place to sleep, and he accepted. 

Once he was more awake, Joe felt a sense of... slight disappointment. He eyed the empty spot of the other bed for a while longer, wondering what it would be like waking up next to someone still asleep, where orange hair would still be a mess of tangles, arms sprawled across the bed and taking over his side, but would have a peaceful look settled on their face. Joe imagined what it would be like if he hadn't invited Cleo to the server, where Cleo wasn't so confident and had begged to stay with him for a few weeks to get settled. 

He imagined what it would be like to hold Cleo. 

Folding the blankets, Joe collected his sword that was stashed at the side and climbed up the ladder, just in time to see Cleo reading through her enchanted book. Cleo hadn't noticed Joe yet, too focused on her reading (more like frustrated, if her look of annoyance was anything to go by).

Joe took a moment to stare at her. The sun rising cast the pirate district into its golden hue, and it surrounded Cleo's form it could trick anyone into thinking she's an angel ("She is an angel," Joe would think). Her usual torn crop top was changed into a comfortable sweater, which Joe found it was a good look on her. Despite her zombie form, Joe wouldn't lie to himself, Cleo was one hell of a hermit. 

"Morning, Cleo!" Joe greeted warmly, deciding that it was the time to reveal himself. Cleo jumped, and from where she was leaning against the edge of the boat, she would have fallen into the water. Thankfully, she caught her balance and playfully gave him a glare. 

"Joe, you moron- I could've fallen!" Cleo laughed, and Joe felt a light feeling bubble in his chest hearing that.

"Now now, that's no way to greet a friend back." 

Cleo rolled her eyes, putting her armor stand book back into her inventory. "Well, morning to you too. How was your sleep?"

"The best one I had since the last time I slept." 

"Joe... You're sleeping in the wilderness."

Joe shrugged, smiling. He pulled out some golden carrots from his inventory and started munching on them, checking on his communicator while doing so. A few more hermits had woken up since then, greeting each others good mornings and 'how are you's. 

"Cleo, what time did you wake up today?" 

The question made Cleo look visibly nervous. "Eh, he... I'm not too sure if I'm quite frank with you. I woke up early before the sun was even out and couldn't really sleep. So I decided to continue working on the schedule and syllabus, then after that, I decided to read up on the armor stand books that Xisuma kindly gave me." 

Joe nodded. "Mhmm. What have you added to the syllabus?"

Cleo pulled out another notebook, clear of any enchantments, and flipped through her writing. 

"I still have to see how much she knows and doesn't know. Until then, I standardized the syllabus to fit her age group, so math is one, early concepts of biology in the overworld..." She listed a few more subjects, most of which are electives and optionals. Joe liked that Cleo would at least give Iris an option to decide which ones she would like to learn first over the others.

"I haven't decided on languages, though. I figured you could handle that."

"Yep. It's gonna be challenging, teaching her how to speak, but I believe that she can do it. I may even throw in some Galactic classes just for the fun of it." 

"You mean that hell of a language that only two people in this server understands?"

"She's young, with time she'll be a master at it!"

They laughed until it dissolved into blissful silence. Last night's terrors were pushed to the back of their heads, and the two friends enjoyed the rising sun from the ship. 

Joe barely felt a finger being interlocked with his own until Cleo started speaking.

"Thank you, Joe." 

Joe looked down at their fingers linked together. It felt... odd, feeling her skin. It's not a bad feeling, per se, just very unusual. Which is what Joe loves about. 

Cleo never did any physical contact with anyone, but Joe knows that she craved for it. She's just scared to act on that due to her skin. Joe didn't care.

"You got to be more specific there, Cleo." Joe laughed when Cleo flashed him an annoyed look. Though she looked away, her orange hair covering her face. Joe didn't know what she was feeling, but he could feel Cleo's finger curling more. 

"... For being by my side and for inviting. I know it's been years since we've been part of the hermitcraft server, but I still can't phantom the thought that... What if I had declined you. Do you understand where I'm getting at?"

Joe hummed. "I suppose, but really anyone could've invited you. Xisuma definitely would have, especially since hearing about your amazing skills in the arts of armor stands."

"Yes, but it was you."

The line caused Joe to turn in surprise. Based on Cleo's shocked expression, she herself was also surprised. The two stared at each other before turning away at the same time, Joe slightly blushing. 

When Cleo said those words, Joe didn't know how to feel about it. The way she said it... how determined she briefly looked and how strong her tone was. Perhaps there was something more beneath those words of declaration? 

Before Joe could ask, he could feel the finger uncurl itself from his. He watched with a slightly saddened expression as Cleo took a few steps back. 

"I'm gonna work on some armor stands." Cleo said, avoiding eye contact. 

"Okay, remember to take breaks!" Joe called as Cleo disappeared down into the ship. The only reply he got was a thumbs-up, which he supposed was better than nothing. 

Now that he was alone, Joe let out a very loud sigh, leaning his entire body onto the rails of the boat, resting his head against the wood. 

He was interrupted by the sound of his communicator beeping into his pocket. Still resting his forehead against the wooden rail, he looked down at his communicator with a slightly raised eyebrow. 

**DM; <Xisuma>, <joehillssays>**   
**< Xisuma> Morning, joe. i need you to come to my base for a while. there is some things I would like to discuss**   
**< Xisuma> Fyi, it is about Iris**   
**< joehillssays> Is it something serious?**   
**< Xisuma> More like extra information I acquired recently**   
**< Xisuma> I think you would like this, though**

  
That piqued Joe's interest. He sent Xisuma a quick message before pocketing his communicator. With rockets in hand, the hermit took off into the skies.

* * *

**< Xisuma> Nether is working normally now. I'd avoid hitting the pigmen for the time being though  
**

Mumbo watched Doc lit up the nether portal to life. He couldn't help but stare warily at the purple swirls, afraid that the pigman would warp through and began attacking everyone again. When it was confirmed that there was no more danger, they all let out sigh of relief. 

"Are you sure it's okay for Iris to stay with us?" Iskall worriedly asked. "I mean, she's already close to you guys, I'm not sure how she would react with us alone." 

"I don't think that's much of a problem." Grian, despite his tired posture, gave Mumbo a cheeky grin. Mumbo didn't understood the implication, but then noticed Iris staring up at him. 

Well, not at him. He noticed that she had a very heavy interest on his tie... 

"Oh yea, she has an interest in the color red." 

That would explain the sudden attention. Not quite knowing what to do, Mumbo decided to untie the red fabric around his neck. He watched, amused written all over his face as Iris' eyes sparkled at the sight of the red fabric. She readily accepted the accessory and started fiddling with it between her fingers. 

"I hardly think my tie is gonna keep her entertained for long." Mumbo flatly said, now having to experience watching Iris experimentally nibble on one end of the tie. Iskall was trying not to laugh like a complete idiot. 

"It won't take too long. Just like... I dunno, think of something. If these idiots can take care of her for a day you two can watch over her for an hour."  
Grian and Ren looked offended but didn't protest, likely because Doc was right about that. 

Before Mumbo could make some kind of comment, three comminucators simultaneously beeped at the same time. He watched as Doc, Grian and Ren pulled out their communicators in one swift motion.

"We gotta get moving if we want to meet up with Xisuma. Iris! Come give us a goodbye hug!" Ren likely meant that as a joke, but he kneeled down and opened his arms anyway. Iris ran up to the dog hybrid and gave him a hug, letting out some giggles while doing so. She then moved to Grian, who had reached down to wrap his arms around her in a delicate hug. Doc, on the other hand, put his fist out in an awkward gesture of a fist-bump. Iris looked confused and only wrapped her small hands around the fist.

"Okay, okay, we should be going now. Bye guys!" Grian and Ren waved at the redstoners, following Doc through the nether portal. 

Mumbo quietly wondered how long it would took until something goes wrong."AH! IRIS DON'T SWALLOW THAT!"Iskall patted Iris back as she choked on Mumbo's tie. Defeated, Mumbo sighed. 

This is gonna be a long hour.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me: yea so romance isnt that important so  
> also me: hahaha unrequited joe/cleo? 
> 
> ANYWAY HI so a handful of you found the ask blog idea really really good so I literally spent thhe last thirty minutes preparing the blog and im proud to say that its up and RUNNING! its [HERE](https://ask-the-hermits-and-one-child.tumblr.com/) CLICK ON THATFWUOEAJHJOHEW cant you see how excited i am?
> 
> also! also! i have different ideas for chapter 10 and im not sure which one i should focus on. one is not better than the other but it would just show different perspectves happening at the same day. SO! I'll leave the option to you! do you want to quell your curiosity and find out what xisuma will do next (aka just xisuma telling joe and the others whats up so goodie more lore) oR would you want to see mumbo being an absolute spoon as he babysits iris? (fluff gauranteed)


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, most wants the plot, i shall give the plot! 
> 
> also please check the end notes for an important notice !!!! pLEASE

Xisuma had not slept. At all. 

He thought temporarily deleting the Zombie Pigmen files would cause the server to collapse but strangely enough, it was pretty stable with an occasional lag. It didn't really take long for him to check on the code (and find that there was nothing wrong with it) and putting the codes back to where it belonged. It also didn't take too long for Xisuma to travel to the nether himself to check on the mobs to see if they were still acting hostile upon first notice. 

They didn't. The Zombie Pigman only stared at him with their dark and unreadable eyes. Xisuma was tempted to punch them and see how they react, but he decided against it and went back to the overworld. 

He spent the next hour or two in the dead of night pacing back and forth, wondering why the Pigman was suddenly so hostile. He was making theories and debunking them for none of them made any sense in his head. He also spent the time checking the codes and the files repeatedly, but sure enough, nothing was out of order. 

And because of that, Xisuma began to feel anxious. 

It couldn't be _nothing_. Nothing won't be able to change the codes of neutral mobs to suddenly become not only hostile but deadly and violent. Why? And how did it even happen? Unanswered questions kept Xisuma's head spinning.

Perhaps... No, there's no way that Iris has something to do with the Pigman. 

But the possibility was certainly high. 

Xisuma didn't want to make any drastic decisions that could tear their community apart. Yes, he has to ensure the safety of his hermits, but he can not deny their emotional connection with the young child. She's only been here for a day and suddenly she had Grian, Ren and even Doc within her finger (without her even realizing it). 

Banning or removing a normal adult may be disheartening, but the hermits would learn to move on. 

But what about a child? 

A child always has the largest effect on everyone. If Xisuma were to take drastic measures and... 'forcefully' remove Iris from the server, it would impact everybody emotionally. Everyone will change because of one single mistake. 

Xisuma needs to be smart about how he's gonna handle whatever the hell is happening to his server. 

When he realized the sun was rising up, he sighed. He hoped no one would notice the dark eye bags under his eyes.

He went to the kitchen in his base and started making himself some tea. While waiting for the kettle to boil, he began to formulate a plan. 

It's unlikely he's gonna find anything if he were to continue his method of searching through codes. It's like finding a needle in a haystack... where the needle is not even there to begin with. 

When it was just the night cycles and the sudden surge of stronger mobs, Xisuma had spent a full month trying to figure out the problem. He couldn't. Then the worst storm came to their server, followed by purple lightning which lead them to find Iris... then after that, it was the Pigman's sudden hostility.

If Xisuma can't solve a simple glitch with night cycles and stronger mobs, imagine how long it would take for him to solve Iris' appearance and the Pigman? 

The kettle whistled loudly, and Xisuma turned off the stove. Pouring himself a cup of tea, Xisuma then decided. He can't solve everything at once, he has to look at the ones he can solve.

Anything related to the server is out of the question, which leaves figuring out where Iris came from. Or at the very least... find out what her homeworld was like. 

Luckily for the admin, he so happened to have a few connections outside the server that could aid in his search. The only problem is, it would likely take a few days and he doesn't want the hermits to worry. Nonetheless, know about what he and Doc had found out about Iris. 

It would raise confusion and mixed feelings. It's best for everyone to be kept in the dark unless Xisuma was absolutely sure about who exactly Iris is. 

But first, he's got to ensure Iris is occupied at all times... through a schedule. 

Pulling out his communicator, he messaged four different people about two different things. He then waited.

* * *

Joe Hills came through the nether portal first. He had greeted the admin with a smile and accepted the offered teacup.

"Green tea today, Xisuma?" Joe asked when he tasted the beverage. Xisuma shrugged, not willing to admit that due to his lack of sleep, he wasn't thinking straight and only grabbed the first tea bag he saw. 

"Perhaps. What were you doing before coming here, Joe?"

"Hm? Oh, I just spent the morning with Cleo. She gave me a place to sleep for the night, which I'm mighty grateful for. She's a good friend." 

Xisuma couldn't help but let one end of his lips curl in a knowing smile. Being an admin has its quirks... as well as the undying need to know what every hermit is doing. So he may know a few things that happened between Joe and Cleo. (Not to mention they were around since a few seasons ago, too. So he knows a lot).

"Just friends, huh? So nothing happened between you two last night? Not even cudd-"

Joe let out a squeak and punched Xisuma's shoulder. It didn't inflict any pain, and it only made Xisuma laugh. Joe's face was red and he looked like he was pouting slightly. 

"Let's... Let's not talk about Cleo and me, okay? What do you need to discuss with me?" 

Respecting the need to change the subject, Xisuma stopped laughing.

"We're just waiting on a few more people. They should be coming any second now."

Sure enough, both Joe and Xisuma heard the nether portal warping to life. They saw the three expected hermits appear through the portal- Doc first, followed by Ren and Grian who were laughing at a stupid joke. Xisuma saw that all three of them have bags in their eyes, which made Xisuma feel bad for them. 

"Cool, everyone is here. Would you like some tea?" 

"Nah, I'm good. Also, hey Joe!" 

Joe waved at Ren. 

They all chatted for a little while before Xisuma started purposely coughing, catching everyone's attention.

"Alright, the reason why I have the four of you here is that there are some things I would like to discuss regarding Iris." 

"Is it... bad?" Grian asked warily. 

"No, no of course not. But it is something related to her." Xisuma paused briefly. "I... personally believe that Iris has something to do with what's been happening to the server. Not as a whole, just a very small part of it. But trying to find the solution here in the server won't get me anywhere- believe me, I spent a month trying to fix the night cycles and the mobs, look where that got me."

Grian unintentionally let out a choked laugh, which he immediately covered his mouth to stop it. Doc nudged his shoulder hard. With the height difference, Grian yelped and nearly fell over.

"... Anyway. I'll be leaving the server for a while to meet up with a few connections of mine, see if they know anything about Iris."  
  
"So, assuming this succeeds and you do find where Iris came from... What then?" Ren questioned. Despite his even voice, Xisuma recognized the sadness behind it. It was also supported at the flattened ears against his head. 

"I'm not sure yet, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Right now, it would be safer if we at least know where she came from, right?"

Ren silently nodded, though Xisuma's words didn't do much to make him feel better. Grian gave him a sympathetic pat on the back.

"Wait, so you'll be leaving for a while, who's gonna look after the server?"

"Oh, that's where you come in, Joe. You'll become a temporary admin in my absence." 

Joe looked shocked. "But- But- Wait, I thought you were gonna tell me about what you learned about Iris that I will be interested in! Not suddenly being told that I'll become a temporary admin!"

Xisuma resisted the urge to laugh at Joe's frantic rambling. "That too. Out of everyone in the server, only the two of us could understand Galactic without much trouble. I believe it'll be easier for you and Cleo to communicate with her since she also possessed some knowledge of Galactic."

This... also shocked Joe. In fact, it rendered him speechless. 

However, Grian looked confused. "Wait wait wait- so, why tell us this? Why the four of us specifically and not the rest of the hermits?" 

Xisuma noticed Doc was uncharacteristically silent. Though he ignored the sudden worry forming at the pit of his stomach to answer Grian's question. 

"Out of everyone, you three are the closest to Iris, so I figured you three deserve to know what I would be doing. For Joe, it'll be better if at least one other person here in the server can communicate with Iris... in a way. Also, I trust him enough to look after the server for a few days." 

"That's... I mean, that's an honor but are you okay? You rarely ever leave the server unless it's really important."

Xisuma almost wanted to smack Joe. Almost. 

"Joe, buddy, this is important. I know some people in another server that could help me find out more about Iris. Trust me on this." 

The poet's expression was unreadable, but Xisuma knows that Joe's just thinking. Knowing him, Xisuma was relieved that Joe would at least trust him with this. 

Grian... is another story.

He looked lost and conflicted. Frustrated and full of questions. 

"Then- Then let me come with! I want to help!" Grian reminded Xisuma of a stubborn child... except instead of throwing a fit over something stupid, Grian really has a good heart and wanted to help. Xisuma considered accepting Grian's request because quite honestly Xisuma felt a bit... anxious going out the server alone. He's done it a handful of times by now but rarely was it ever because he came back to his homeworld. 

He always had to look over his shoulder every ten minutes and depended on all of his senses to make sure no one gets a jump on him. Because if they do, they could kill him. And there's no respawning in the place he'll be going to. 

"I appreciate the offer, Grian. But I can not risk any of my hermits being in danger. Where I'm going isn't safe, but I know the information I could find there would be valuable." Xisuma explained calmly, trying to reassure the shorter man that he would be fine. However, it only made Grian more agitated.

"If it's so unsafe, who's gonna watch your back?!" 

That was actually a good argument. However, before he could make up another excuse, Doc slung his arm over Xisuma, pulling him close.

"Don't worry about him, Grian. I'll make sure he's safe and sound out there."

Despite his cheery and even joking tone, Xisuma caught a glint in his red mechanical eye. It suddenly made him nervous. 

"... Fine. When are you leaving?" Grian gave in, defeated. Ren patted him on the back as a sign of support.

"In a couple of days."

"Should be more than enough to get us prepared. Why don't you and Ren check up on Iris? There are some things I want to discuss with this guy right here." 

Xisuma looked calm, but his heart was racing. It was absolutely bonkers to think that a hermit would make him feel slightly fearful for his life- especially if that hermit was Doc. 

Though after a brief memory recap of what happened in Season 5... Yea, he shouldn't be so surprised.

Grian, who looked as if he was about to protest, did a double-take and just let out a frustrated huff into the air. He mumbled something inaudible before saying a brief goodbye to the hermits. Going straight for the nether portal, Ren gave the other three an apologetic look and a nervous smile.

"Our communicators are always with us if there's anything we should know," Ren said before following Grian through the nether portal. 

As the nether portal warped them away, Joe let out a sigh.

"Suma', I have an odd feeling that there is something more to this 'mission' of yours than what meets the eye."

Oh, you have no idea. 

"Well, I'll be off then. Do message me if there's anything I should know before leaving, I hate to be unprepared."

Doc scoffed. "As if you were ever, Mr. Dad of the server."

Joe grinned, and also bid a farewell as he disappeared into the nether. 

The two hermits stayed silent for a while, basking into the peacefulness of it all until Doc spoke. 

"There's something I want to ask." 

"... Would you like some tea?"

* * *

Xisuma never really spent the time listening to the waves, but when Doc suggested they speak around the rim that separates his base and the water, Xisuma wished he could stay there forever.

There was something different about it, just hearing nothing but the waves crashing against his build. Maybe that was why Grian and Mumbo settled their bases in the middle of the ocean- to experience this. He chuckled to himself, realizing just how much he's missing due to his admin duties. 

"So, what questions do you have? Because I'm assuming you'll be my 'partner-in-crime' for the next few days or so." 

Doc grunted. He had his hands stuffed in the pockets of his tattered lab coat- something Xisuma never asked, but did find strangely odd. 

The creeper hybrid looked across the distant ocean for a while, thinking.

"When we found out Iris was an NPC... you reacted quite strongly to it. Why?"

Xisuma let his fingers curl into a tight fist, feeling the nails dig into his leather gloves a bit too tightly. 

Everyone that ever came to Hermitcraft always had a reason for doing so. Behind their smiles and laughter, the heavyweight of lies and horrific experiences loomed over them, whether they like to or not. Most never had to share these thoughts with others... Some had, for the sake of their own health. 

Xisuma never had a reason to share his past life to the others. And even if he had... he doubted he could bring himself to mention it. 

"Doc, do you know what an NPC is?"

Doc let out an unintentional squeak of surprise, catching Xisuma off guard. They laughed over the sound, and like that the tension that was there before disappeared. Doc grinned at Xisuma and gave him a slight shove on the shoulder. "Dude, that's not fair. You're answering my question with a question."

"I'm serious!"

The hybrid shook his head in disbelief. "NPCs are Non-Player Characters. They don't have the same consciousness like you and me. From the very start, NPCs follow a certain code and programming, giving them the illusion of having a 'consciousness' when they don't. Does that answer your question?"

Xisuma nodded. He ignored the feeling of puking. 

"Good, good. Now, do you know that NPCs aren't necessarily just villagers or 'people without a conscious'?" 

Doc hummed in thought. "That's vague as hell, X. But... I am aware that there are worlds out there that live only on NPCs. I've never heard or seen such things, but they exist."

Xisuma nodded with a smile. "Yes, you're right. Now tell me the basics of how every world functions." 

Doc looked absolutely confused, if not a bit annoyed with the vague questions. "Every world has one admin at most looking after everything. And in every world... there are rules that they have to comply with. Perma-death, magic, a few other examples. Some worlds may even have 'modifications' provided by the admin to make things more interesting in their world. In other cases, they already have those things pre-coded before the first load. Did I get it right?"

Xisuma let out a tiny chuckle. "Most, but you got one thing wrong. Not every world has an admin... or doesn't need to have one. For example... NPC worlds. The... inhabitants there only consists of NPCs. They live off of the rules of their world and don't need any admin to look after them."

"Because they can look after themselves." Doc was following along. "That makes sense, but why are you telling me this?" 

"I have a... few theories, so to speak. Iris is an NPC, but not the usual NPCs we have in our world. She's not a villager and looks like a player. So it gives me the idea that in Iris' homeworld, it's actually an NPC world like what I just explained. And I have a feeling- though it may be far-fetched... That when Iris arrived in our world, certain codings of her world also came with." 

Doc looked slightly lost but nodded once he figured out. "It makes sense. May even explain the reason why you can't find any problems with the night cycles and everything and struggled- some codes of Iris' world came here and screwed some of it up."

"I wouldn't call it screwed, more like modified it." Xisuma pulled up a panel and did a double-check on the mobs. They are exactly the same as he last saw them. "Now... the only problem is that I don't exactly know what those codes are. They could be similar to our codes and I couldn't figure it out and filter it easily." He paused, the panel disappearing in front of him.

"Not to mention if that was the case, then it means Iris has been here for a month or more without our knowledge, which wouldn't make much sense."

"And if Iris' world rules depend on the codes that screwed- sorry, 'modified' the mobs to be suddenly hostile... Who knows how actually dangerous her homeworld is. Not to mention Iris was a hybrid of some sort and was tortured.

Xisuma hasn't thought of that before. Ren had already told them about Iris and the scars on her back. Grian had apparently pointed out two particular scars that would've been where her wings would be sprouted. 

This made him shudder, despite feeling furious. Was Iris' world that bad?

Doc made an audible noise of surprise. "Wait... Iris is an NPC, so assuming she is from an NPC world where there are no admins, how did she get here?"

"That... I have no explanation for that."

He really doesn't. Xisuma had thought of that for hours but couldn't form a theory of sorts. Iris likely came from an NPC world, though it wouldn't be too off to say there was an admin in that NPC world. But why would there be an admin there? Admin roles can only be passed onto players because they have consciousness within the universe of endless worlds to even understand what an admin is

And even if there was an admin there... It did not explain how Iris got into the Hermitcraft server. It was private, for goodness sake, and he doesn't know of any admin who possessed the ability to literally toss NPC or Players into another server.

Worse still, he didn't think it was possible for an NPC to _travel_ within servers. Players possess that ability because they have the conscious to know how servers work whereas NPCs do not.

This was all very confusing, Xisuma can't even wrap his head around it. 

But for the sake of Iris, a _child_ , he has to know. If he knew what he was up against, he could prepare himself for any sudden emergencies and help everyone. 

Xisuma can't imagine what it was like to be in Iris' mind right now. The confusion, fear, not even knowing where she came from. She doesn't deserve to live that life. 

His fist tightened some more. 

No one deserves to live that life, because _he_ himself has experienced it. 

"Xisuma? Are you okay?" 

Xisuma nodded, uncurling his fist so it laid hanging on his side. "I'm alright. It's just a lot of stuff to consider and take in, but we can do this one step at a time, right? Because I have a feeling you're not gonna leave my side until you figure out the mystery behind Iris." 

Doc laughed. "I suppose. It's a weird feeling to suddenly be so fond of a kid, much less like Iris within a short period of time. But I know what it's like to live a shitty life. If we can somehow make Iris' childhood better, then I'm all for it. Besides, this dangerous mission seems more fun than babysitting Iris all the time." 

It was Xisuma's turn to shove the hybrid on the shoulder playfully. "Oh, please. You like hanging around the kid." 

"I still have my pride, Xisuma."

It felt reassuring knowing Doc has his back. Even though Xisuma never explicitly said what exactly Doc will experience outside the safety of the Hermitcraft server, he knew the hybrid wouldn't back out. Not when his care for the child had run too deep. A tiny part of him still believed Doc should stay in the server, but he's glad that he didn't deny his help. 

Which reminded him, he should give everyone an early notice of his absence soon, to lessen the worry when they suddenly realize their admin left the server. 

However, before he could come up with a plan, their communicators began vibrating.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> howdy fellas!
> 
> So if you don't know, I made an ask-blog for the hermits and iris here! It's already been an awesome experience getting to answer questions and asks and I'm just saying it is STILL OPEN until the release of next chapter which would be posted in... depending on how fast i can write. 
> 
> ask any of them as many questions as you want! or check out the work-in progress blog right [hERE](https://ask-the-hermits-and-one-child.tumblr.com/)
> 
> dont worry, the ask box would close when the next chapter releases, but within like,, seven hours it would open again so it would be another hermits' turn to answer the asks and questions
> 
> whICH COMES TO THIS!:
> 
> who do you want to see next in the ask-blog? if you dont know, grian ren doc and iris are currently available to answer questions until the next chapter release. until then, who do you want to see next?
> 
> 1\. Mumbo  
> 2\. Xisuma  
> 3\. Joe and Cleo
> 
> make sure to vote in the comments because i actually read them and i love you all and im also indecisive and want to know what you guys want we cool? cool
> 
> also im really encouraging you all to give it a follow because there may be some... interesting information the hermits might say


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> now we have fluff 
> 
> slight warning for a sliiiightly long end note

Mumbo was having the worst day ever.

Iskall, on the other hand, is having a blast.

"Can you stop tossing Iris in the air like a ball- Oh my word you're gonna get her hurt and then Grian is gonna have my head and- ISKALL PLEASE-" It has only been five minutes since Grian and the others left through the portal to meet up with Xisuma, and already Iskall was playing with Iris. 

Or putting having fun putting Iris into danger. 

"Ah, don't worry man! She likes it." Iskall ruffled Iris' hair before tossing her up, the height getting worryingly higher and higher. Contrasting Mumbo's fear and worry, he could see the sheer joy and excitement Iris portrayed on her face as she momentarily stayed in the air before gravity pulled her down, Iskall catching her in his arms with ease. 

"You like that, Iris? Wanna go higher?" Iskall asked. Iris began squirming in his grip, letting out choked sounds of laughter as she indirectly begged to be tossed into the air again. 

Mumbo warily looked at his friend, honestly at a loss for words because really Iskall? Quite frankly he should have expected this from his chaotic friend. He knew Grian was just as chaotic but at least he had the decency to act civilized around a child. 

Iskall might as well be that crazy cousin everyone somehow loved but worry for their safety because of how crazy he was... Or would uncle sound better? Why is he thinking of whether or not Iskall is a cousin or an uncle? 

"Alright, one more!" "Iskall-!" 

Iskall lurched Iris into the air, and for a moment Mumbo was left speechless. For a few seconds, he swore time had stopped, leaving the young girl to be suspended in mid-air.

Long, white hair flew behind her, and for a brief moment, he swore it almost looked as if she was an angel- with white angelic wings that stretched beyond her. Her arms, opened at both sides as if she was balancing herself to stay upright. The absolute joy and happiness on her face, with a smile so wide Mumbo, thought he was dreaming. 

Iris looked as if she was flying. Like she belonged in the skies. 

That moment soon passed, and before Mumbo could properly process what he just saw in his mind, Iskall had caught her once more. Just like that, everything was back to what it was, with Iris laughing giddily as Iskall coaxed her once more if she wanted to be tossed up again. 

Mumbo placed a hand on his forehead, pressing against the skin because he thought he was having some kind of fever. He was feeling warm, he had to admit, but he wasn't sick. Delusional, perhaps. What in the world did he just saw?" 

"Hey, Mumbo! We still have a bit of time to kill, let's go meet the other hermits, see what they're up to." Iskall suggested, snapping Mumbo out from his thoughts. The taller technician noticed the concern flashing across his friend's face, which meant he saw Mumbo acting strangely just a minute ago. 

"That is a wonderful idea." Mumbo agreed, deciding that maybe he should keep his thoughts to himself. Iskall gave him a smile and a thumbs-up in response. 

Mumbo decided to bring some items with him in case Iris got too bored or wanted a snack. He remembered Grian showing him a shulker box full of items and building blocks, so he took the time to transfer the enchantment books and the book Iris was drawing on into another shulker box- colored white. He also stored in some apples, remembering how much Iris liked Joe's apple pie yesterday morning. 

"Okay, it's your turn to carry Iris." 

"Whoa- what-?!" Mumbo tripped over his words, unable to form a response before Iskall practically dumped Iris into his arms. Mumbo struggled to carry her for a while, not expecting her to actually be that heavy. Of course, she isn't heavy, but the unexpected weight still made him surprised. Iskall realized this and began laughing. 

Rolling his eyes, Mumbo adjusted his hold onto Iris so that Iris was staying upright, his arms holding up most of her upper body with her legs hanging below. Iris squirmed a bit before wrapping an arm around Mumbo, the other arm now playing with the red tie that was hung around Mumbo's neck.

"See? It wasn't so bad now, was it?" 

"Goodness me, you're rough. You could've hurt either me or Iris!" Mumbo huffed. "... Eh, whatever. Where do you want to go next?"

"Dunno. Where does Iris want to go next?"

Both hermits looked at Iris in question. Iris was too busy playing with the end of Mumbo's tie to notice their stares.

"... Yea, there's no way we're gonna get an answer out of her."

"I beg to differ. Hey, Iris!" Iris looked at Iskall, noticing that he had both his palms out for him to touch.

"I have two options here. My right hand is Hermitville, and my left hand is the mainland. Which one do you prefer?" 

Iris looked between the two hands before slapping the right hand, letting out giggles while doing so.

"Uh... Iskall, I don't think she knows what she's even answering to." 

"Nooonseeeense. New Hermitville or Area 77?"

"Area 77-?! Iskall, no!" 

It was too late, Iris has made her answer. Fortunately, she reached over to New Hermitville instead of the latter. This made Mumbo sigh in relief, because he remembered that Area 77 and the Hippie Commune were at war... or somewhere along those lines. He honestly didn't know what was up with Grian and Doc getting into different sides, Mumbo was reminded of them being in some kind of love-hate relationship with heavy sexual tensions in the background.

Maybe he's just exaggerating, but he really doesn't understand the rivalry between them. Apparently, Concorp wasn't enough for little old Grian. 

... He suddenly remembered that both Grian and Doc are close to Iris. He wondered how Iris would react once she learned both her parental figures are at opposing sides for two different scenarios. 

"Well, let's get to New Hermitville. Bdubs and Keralis should be there." 

Iskall made another thumbs up. This time, Iris followed what Iskall did, making the hermit coo and feel proud. Mumbo couldn't help but sigh but smiled anyway because he really did find Iris cute.

* * *

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Mumbo asked, watching Iskall adjust the strap around Iris on himself. It's like a baby strap that parents used to hold their babies... But looks more inefficient and really made Mumbo wonder if he's the only one with the brain cell in his Architect group. Iris doesn't seem to mind, in fact, she seemed pretty excited. 

"I'm sure. Race ya!" 

Mumbo stammered some words when Iskall launched himself off the tower and towards New Hermitville. Grian is so gonna kill him.

Though his worries lessened when he heard Iris' faint scream of joy. This finally encouraged him to jump off the tower and start flying, briefly looking up to see the ginormous build Grian, Iskall and Scar have made. Despite losing, he only really felt bad for Stress whose ice house had to endure all their shenanigans.

The flight to New Hermitville didn't take too long, and soon Mumbo ungracefully landed on the village with Iskall already dropping Iris on the ground. 

Once her feet touched the soft grass, she began running around, jumping around, squealing everywhere. 

"Mumbo Jumbo and Iskall! Hey!" Both Mumbo and Iskall looked up to see Bdubs barreling down towards them on his elytra. Unlike Mumbo, Bdubs actually calculated his drop and manage to land without risking many injuries. "What's up? I see Iris came to visit! Where are her parents?"

"You mean Grian and the others? They went to talk to Xisuma about some important stuff so Mumbo and I are stuck on baby sitting duty."

Bdubs nodded his head with a very focused look on his face, exaggerated with a hand under his chin. "Mhm. I see I see." 

Mumbo couldn't help but give Iskall a look. Despite yesterday's events, he didn't seem very affected. Or maybe he's just hiding it really well. 

Whatever it was, Mumbo had no time to dwell on it, because he realized Iris came running back to them, a handful of flowers gathered in her arms. 

Mumbo cringed at the sight of dirt covering her face and even getting the guinea pig hoodie dirty. He has to remind himself to get Iris a bath later on. 

"Ooo! What's this you got here?" Bdubs kneeled down so he was at Iris' height. Iris pulled out a poppy flower from her hand-made bouquet and showed it to Bdubs with a wide smile on her face. Bdubs gasped loudly, a hand on his chest as he accepted the gift gratefully. 

"For me? You shouldn't have!" He said, tucking the poppy flower into his red bandana that was tied around his head. Bdubs ruffled Iris' hair playfully, making Iris squeal in response to the attack, some of the flowers falling onto the ground. 

Moving on, she went to Iskall and pulled out a blue orchid. Some of the petals had fallen off for some reason, but nonetheless Iskall accepted it with a huge grin on his face, giving her his thanks. 

It was then Mumbo's turn. She pulled out a red tulip and brought it up to Mumbo. Giving the younger child a shy smile, Mumbo accepted the gift and inspected the flower closely. It was just an ordinary tulip, but it felt different somehow. Perhaps it was because the red tulip given to him was a gift, instead of an item used for composting to get bonemeal. It was strange, realizing that Mumbo had never received a flower as a gift before. 

Iris unceremoniously dropped all her flowers on the grass and kneeled down before it. She picked out different flowers and started weaving the stems together, or at least attempted in trying to do so. 

"That's not how you do a flower crown! Here, let me show you." Bdubs sat down next to her and picked out some flowers from the pile. Mumbo watched, surprised to see how skilled Bdubs was with kids as he softly explained and showed how to make a simple flower crown. Iris' attention was entirely on the process, and she quietly followed Bdubs' steps with the occasional gasp of surprise when she managed to succeed a step. 

"Hey, Mumbo! Come on, sit by me man." Mumbo looked over to see Iskall on the ground by Iris' side, patting beside him as an invitation. Seeing as there was not much of a choice, Mumbo sat down beside Iskall and started making his own flower crown. 

"Whoa, you two are good. When did you learn how to make flower crowns?" Bdubs looked surprised at seeing Mumbo being able to make flower crowns. It wasn't as pretty as Bdubs', but it still looked pretty decent. 

"Grian happened to teach me one day and it just stuck to me." Mumbo shrugged, pulling out a daisy to add on to his flower crown. 

Iskall's flower crown was much prettier. Despite the numerous types of flowers, he somehow managed to weave them together to make an elaborate pattern that makes it so appealing to look at. Iskall locked the flowers together and tested it by putting it on his head. Satisfied with the result, he answered back.

"Stress sometimes forced me to make flower crowns with her." He said, smiling. 

Mumbo briefly wondered if Stress' health was improving.

"Well, didn't take you two for making flower crowns but- hey! That's really good, Iris!"

Mumbo covered his mouth with his hand, hiding his chuckles as he saw Iris' flower crown. It wasn't bad, definitely could be better. The only problem was that most of the petals kind of torn itself from its stem... and it was too big that it ended up being a necklace on Iris. 

"Eh, you can have mine." Iskall switched out their flower crowns. Mumbo watched, amused as he saw Iris practically glowing under the beauty of the pretty flower crown. 

Seeing as most of the flowers were used, Iris then stood up and ran to Mumbo. He let out a small 'Hey!' when Iris started pulling on his hand, urging him to follow her. 

"I think she wants to play." Bdubs helpfully said as Mumbo gave in and stood up, though having to bend over when Iris kept on dragging him. 

Once they were about two blocks away from Iskall and Bdubs, Iris let go and started running on her own. Mumbo didn't understand until Iris stopped and suddenly started waving her arms above her head. 

Oh, they were playing a game. 

Mumbo decided to play along and started chasing Iris around. Iris began squealing once Mumbo began chasing her, and for a while the two played a game of tag. Mumbo purposely didn't use his full speed because he knows he can catch up to Iris easily, but he later found out just how fast Iris can actually run. Soon, he could already feel the sweat pouring down his forehead as he reached out to tag Iris, only to 'fail' as Iris dodged his hand and did a quick turn. 

"Hey, I wanna join in, too!" Bdubs exclaimed, pushing himself off from the ground as he joined the two in their game of tag. Mumbo briefly saw Iskall shaking his head before laying down on the grass to take a nap.

He saw Iris looking at Bdubs, and used that moment of distraction to tap her head. Iris made an undescribable sound of surprise and reached over to touch her head, turning around only to see Mumbo smiling innocently at her, skipping backward while keeping his eye on the tagger. 

There was a look in Iris' eyes- almost like a look of competitiveness as she started going after Mumbo, who could easily dodge thanks to his tall height and generally long limbs. 

Iris shuffled between Mumbo and Bdubs whenever they came too close to her. At some point Bdubs felt bad and 'tripped' over himself so Iris can tag him.

It went like this for a while until they all felt exhausted. They walked over to where Iskall was and saw Keralis had joined him. 

"Bubbles! Nice moves you got there." Keralis said as Bdubs took a seat next to him. The wide-eyed hermit looked over at Iris. "Hello there. Sorry that our first introductions weren't smooth sailing." 

Iris understood none of that, obviously, but Mumbo doubt Iris could careD that she couldn't understand what the people around her were talking about. She looked really happy with how she kept on moving her upper body side to side, humming a tune to herself. 

"Y'know, I think I like having little Iris around the server," Bdubs confessed, halting the conversation between Keralis and Iskall. Mumbo placed the shulker box down and allowed Iris to look through it, eventually pulling out her drawing book and a quill. Mumbo watched her draw as he heard Keralis asked why.

"I mean, it's like a change of pace. We've been here for months just doing our own projects and stuff, then Iris came out of nowhere and changed things up. She's only been here a day and everyone pretty much liked her." 

"Maybe so, but Iris doesn't like everyone," Iskall interjected. "I heard from Scar that when Iris came to visit Concorp with G-man and Ren, she looked hella nervous and wanted to get out of there."

"Is that so? I wonder why." Mumbo gently pat Iris hair, tucking a strand that was covering her face behind her ear.

"Well, I'm sure Iris would feel comfortable eventually. We're all nice hermits!" Keralis optimistically said. "Say, what are you drawing, Iris?" 

It was strangely funny to talk to someone despite knowing they don't understand you, but it seemed like Iris has been learning fast and knows when someone's asking a question. She looked up, confused for a moment as she stared at Keralis' eyes. After Mumbo pointed at her drawing book, Iris grinned and showed them all her drawings.

Bdubs let out a surprised squeak, Keralis' huge eyes went even bigger from shock, and Iskall looked as if he wanted to tear up. Mumbo was left speechless as he saw Iris' drawing. 

For her age, it was really impressive to see how detailed her drawings were. So detailed, Mumbo was able to easily identify the characters in her drawings. 

It was on one page only, but she drew four people in a landscape. The first was the tallest amongst the other three, a visible outline of a mustache and random scribbles on the top acting as hair with dot eyes. She managed to draw his suit perfectly- even managed to shade it in a dark ink. The second person was someone... greatly shorter than the sketch version of Mumbo. She had scribbled spiky hair on top and a beard, even drew a square on the left side of the face instead of a regular dot. It didn't take too long to figure out she had drawn Iskall. 

Even Keralis and Bdubs looked unique and recognizable. Iris drew Bdubs' head bandana and she also drew Keralis with... big eyes and a hat.

"Iris, you are the most cutest thing I have ever seen." Bdubs gushed, and Mumbo laughed as he started pinching and squeezing Iris' cheeks, who squirmed and squealed as she tried to get away from her aggressor. Escaping from Bdubs' grasp, she climbed onto Mumbo's lap and gave Bdubs a glare, crossing her arms across her chest. 

"Whoa! Since when did she learn that?" 

"Grian, probably." 

Mumbo laughed and wrapped an arm around Iris' middle. When Iris made grabby motions towards the book, Mumbo got it for her so now Iris was drawing from his lap.

She was adding more scribbles onto the drawing. Mumbo thought it was just extra stuff but upon closer inspection, he found something interesting.

She started drawing... squiggly-like lines around Bdubs' body, almost like the line was wrapping around him. It was a strange sight, maybe something he could mention to Grian once he comes back. 

Soon Iris moved on from that page and started drawing another figure. 

"Y'know what would be nice? Maybe a large picnic where everyone is present and having a good time. Doesn't that sound nice?" Bdubs asked. Everyone agreed.

"That sounds wonderful. Maybe we can also do some stargazing at night and enjoy the fireworks afterward." 

"Oh! Oh! And we can light the place around us using those pretty paper lanterns that gives off different colors, like a rainbow!" Keralis happily suggested. "They're really pretty." 

"Yea, I think Iris would like the colors a lot, don't you, Iris?" Mumbo asked, giving his attention to Iris. However, he noticed the girl's shoulders shaking, her hand twitching and her knuckles turning white as her grip on the quill tightened.

"Iris? Hey, hey what's wrong?" As Mumbo went to comfort Iris, their communicators started beeping but he ignored them. Iris started making slashes on her paper, spilling the ink everywhere.

"Iris!" Mumbo didn't like it, but he had to force the quill out from her hand. Iris began screaming and moving around, but he wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace, almost holding her against him. Bdubs and Keralis were talking over one another, asking Mumbo questions but he couldn't listen. Iskall was somewhere in the corner of his vision, checking his communicator with a pale face. 

"Kid? Are you okay?" Keralis asked, worried.

Iris looked between the hermits with wide, glassy grey eyes. She looked fearful, but at the same time worried. Her eyes kept on glancing down at her drawing, and she began mumbling words that none of them understood. At least she wasn't thrashing about anymore, but Mumbo still held her close just in case, softly calming her down by rubbing her head.

On the page were numerous lines. After a while, Mumbo realized they looked strangely a lot like snowflakes. Under all those dark strokes, Mumbo could see a drawing of a figure, though it seemed like Iris was unable to draw the figure fully until she started having her moment. 

"Mumbo, what happened?" Bdubs asked again, concern lacing his voice as he reached over to rub Iris' tears away. Mumbo didn't know, so he only helplessly shrugged. 

He turned to Iskall to check on him, but before he could ask what was wrong, Iskall was already putting on his elytra. A 'Wait!' was pulled out from Mumbo but it was a moment too late; Iskall was already in the skies, flying towards Hermitville. 

The three hermits looked at the now-empty skies with only the grey line of smoke concerned and lost. 

Finally, Mumbo decided to pull his communicator out. 

  
**< Stressmonster101> help**  
**< Falsesymmetry> Stress? whats wrong??**  
**< Stressmonster101> ple as**  
**< Stressmonster101> cpld**  
**< Iskall85> im on my way**  
**< Stressmonster101> hurry**

* * *

Somewhere in the mainlands, a queen was in her castle full of ice and snow, stone bricks built upon an ice berg, a strange place to call a home, but it was. 

But the storm inside grew darker, the cold whispering nothings into the queen's ears as it takes over her body. 

It first started with her fingers- a layer of frost that won't melt. Then she felt it moving up to her arms and her legs, and soon she could barely feel anything except for the piercing coldness striking her poor body. The cold grew stronger, and the queen grew weaker. 

Stress was shivering, laying on her side at the stone ground. She wanted to feel warmth- she yearned to find a torch, but she was too weak. 

She could barely process the fact that whatever she touches, it turned into a thin layer of ice. And as she felt her fear grow, the freezing wind began to pick up from the outside. She was unaware that her entire castle was now covered in frost and ice, and barely realized that the water that surrounded her ice berg was now an ice rink.

Somewhere in the room, her communicator was beeping. Stress only curled some more in hopes she could at least obtain some heat. 

"Please," Stress whispered. "Help me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yall didnt forget about stress, did you?
> 
> reminder to anyone who hasnt seen me scream about it yet there is an ask blog for this fanfic! Click [hERE](https://ask-the-hermits-and-one-child.tumblr.com/)
> 
> speaking of the ask blog, if you remember what i said in the previous chapter, yes! The moment you are reading this, the ask box is closed and Grian, Doc, Ren and Iris are done with answering questions! If you didnt get the chance to ask these hermits and child a question then dont worry! they'll come back soon
> 
> eventually
> 
> considering the fact i have... twent plus hermits to also consider...
> 
> BUT ANYWAY THE VOTES ARE IN and Xisuma won! Wow, you guys really like plot, huh? Anyway when I post this chapter its likely I'll open up the ask box for Xisuma on the same day, so watch out for that
> 
> and also i really want to say how much i appreciate your support in this fanfiction and even with the ask blog! Ive never actually done this before so most of what im doing is pretty much me learning on the go, but im really enjoying it so far and i hope you do, too!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay first of all i apologize for not releasing the next chapter sooner- i have online classes and its been eating away my mental strength to do anything bUT im trying! hope you all are doing well

"What the fuck is this..." 

The swede barely reached the castle when he noticed the dark clouds, as well as the layer of ice that used to be the ocean. He let his wings glide him, but realized it was a mistake as the wind picked up drastically, practically pushing him back. 

Iskall checked his elytra and winced when he realized the low durability. 

Somewhere behind him, he could hear his name being called.

A sharp wind suddenly pushed him back a few metres. Before Iskall could regain his balance, he could feel the material of his elytra tearing against the wind. Soon, he was falling. 

"ISKALL!" 

There was a weird sensation surrounding his body as he fell. Iskall could vaguely feel his descend going slower and slower until he eventually landed into someone's arms. 

"Jesus christ Iskall- what makes you think flying through this blizzard is a good idea?" False grumbled, helping Iskall stand up. They were on land, but even then Iskall could feel the cold nipping through his bare skin as the dark clouds ever grow so big. 

"Stress, she's-" 

"We saw." Cub spoke from behind him. Iskall turned, surprised to see the Concorp duo together with False. They were apparently sticking near Stress' castle when she called for help. "And... well, Scar and I felt something weird prior to Stress' message. I think she's overwhelmed with magic." 

False gaped at the mad scientist. "Magic? Since when did Stress have magic? And didn't Xisuma restrict magic usage here?" 

"Restrict, not remove." Iskall corrected. "It's not weird to see magic every now and then in the server, it's just not as common."

Scar nodded, an uneasy look on his face as he stared at Stress' castle from the distance. It was so intimidating to look at now. Even though it was in the ice berg, the sun still shines down on the castle and there was still an ocean around it. Now, it was just... miserably cold. "Stress... Why didn't she say anything?" 

Iskall winced, feeling a sense of hurt somewhere in his chest. Not just that, though, Iskall also felt guilty. Iskall was worried sick when Stress got poisoned just yesterday- she was so out of it, but he was reassured by Mumbo that she was fine. 

He should've stayed by her side to look after her and show her that if she had any problem, he was there. If Stress didn't tell anyone about her sudden spike in magic, does that mean she didn't trust Iskall enough to reveal such a thing? Iskall never knew she was capable of using magic, but still Iskall would rather have that instead of her in critical danger. 

"I don't think she knew what was happening, either." Cub thought out loud, shocking the other hermits into confusion. 

"What do you mean?"

"The magic Stress has... She probably didn't realize it was even magic until it was too late." 

False gasped softly, looking at the castle in the distance. "I was the last person to see her. I sent her back home I- I should've known-"

"None of us did." Iskall frowned, his voice trembling just a tiny bit knowing Stress was in danger at that very moment. "There was nothing we could do." 

Iskall caught Cub and Scar giving each other a look. Scar looked guilty. 

"... No, we felt it." Scar softly said, as if he was afraid they were gonna attack him for confessing. "Just traces of it, but it was there. We weren't able to pinpoint where the source was coming from, so we assumed it was just the Vex magic acting up as usual."

"It was only when Stress sent that message did we put two and two together... And standing at this very moment." Cub continued, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Stress' magic... it's nothing we have felt before. Now that it's overwhelming we can sense how strong her magic was... how much it's taking over her."

In the distance, Iskall could see a few more figures coming up to them. Joe and Cleo arrived, as well as Impulse. 

"What the heck is going on?!" Joe asked them, arms wrapping around himself to fight off the cold wind gradually getting stronger. Impulse was doing the same, while Cleo looked normal due to her lack of receptors in her body. 

"Apparently Stress has magic and it's overtaking her body, now she's in her castle likely freezing to death and we can't do anything unless we want to be frozen, too!" False explained quickly. Iskall then realized just how foggy the air around them became, and how loud the wind was. There's no way they're gonna get to Stress' castle this way. 

"Her nether portal's closed! I just got a message from Tango!" Impulse stated, one hand gripping onto his communicator like a life-line. "Freaking christ- where's Xisuma?! And the kid?!"

"The kid's safe in New Hermitville- at least I hope so. As for Xisuma-" 

Scar and Cub let out a squeak of surprise as two bodies materialize out of thin air above them. The bodies of both Xisuma and Doc appeared through the slight fog, suspended in mid-air before dropping down onto their feet. Doc staggered a bit and almost fell while Xisuma eyed the frozen castle in the distance with a narrowed look as if he was thinking. 

"This blizzard is gonna freeze us if we go through there," Xisuma stated. "It's already way too cold out here, I can't imagine what it would be like if we were in the same room as Stress." 

"So, what can we do?" Iskall asked, exasperated and concern. "Stress has magic, Stress apparently doesn't know how to use said magic and the magic is taking over Stress- My friend needs help and I- I-" His chest felt restricted, throat closing up all of a sudden that made him choke through his words. With the cold air already making it difficult for him to breathe, Iskall was practically suffocating. 

"Iskall! Iskall, hey, calm down." False and Doc went to his side, grabbing both of his arms as he was practically forced to sit down on the ground. Iskall shuddered and attempted to do the breathing exercises Stress had shown him all those years ago whenever he finds himself struggling to breathe. 

"I- I don't know what's happening, man..." 

Xisuma's look softened, and Iskall could feel the other man kneeling in front of him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know, but I promise you we will get Stress to safety. We just have to reach her first." 

"And how do you suppose we can do that?" Cleo asked, a hand on her hip giving him a questioning look. Iskall noticed Cleo's other hand gripping Joe's, and it makes his insides turn as he thought of a possibility that he would never hold Stress again. 

"Co-ordinates," Xisuma replied simply. "I... have a plan. Not a very liked one, but a plan nonetheless. Right now, Stress is a danger to both herself and the mainland. We have to put her somewhere secluded where she doesn't entirely freeze everything. I was thinking of Area 77." 

Doc and Scar looked at each other in question, a silent conversation happening between them before giving a curt nod to one another. 

"Definitely. Doc and I can prepare a place for her, and with my magic, I think I could put some protection spell so that no other magic can get out of the room." Scar said, a determined look on his face. 

Cub looked worriedly at his business partner. "But we haven't used the Vex magic in so long." 

It was true, Iskall realized. Ever since Season 5 ended, both Scar and Cub have been wary of their usage of magic. The magic wasn't theirs- it was given by the Vex. While Iskall didn't know exactly how the Vex magic worked- he was at least sure of one thing, the Vex magic was like a drug, something they have no control over but craved for more. The Vex magic has taken over their conscious once, he was glad Xisuma was able to put a stop to it.   
Still, his friend was in grave danger.

"There's a reason why I restrict magic in the first place." Xisuma grumbled to himself, sighing. "Okay, okay- um... Scar and Doc, I'll teleport both of you to the coordinates near Area 77 to prepare a room. Iskall, Cleo, Cub, you're coming with me to the castle." 

"Whoa, whoa, hold up there Mr. X-Eye-Suma, we want to help, too!" Impulse blurted out. False and Joe nodded from where they stood, but by the looks of things all three of them were violently shaking from the icy cold wind around them. Frankly, Iskall was feeling the same. 

"I know, but I can't bring everyone without risking all of us. Not to mention, I don't know what Stress is feeling- if anything if she sees all of us she could panic and make the blizzard worse. Until Stress is somewhere safe, it seems like this blizzard is spreading." 

Xisuma's right. Iskall swore he landed on green grass just minutes ago when he accidentally tore his elytra, but now it was coated in a thin layer of white snow. Above him, the dark clouds loomed ever so closer to the districts.

"I need you three to get everyone that is in the shopping district to the nether, where it's safe from the cold." 

Joe nodded and took a few steps back as he began typing furiously into his communicator, no doubt asking all the hermits in the mainland to seek shelter in the nether. 

"Cub? I know you haven't used the Vex magic in so long, but do you reckon you can put some cold resistance spell to both you and Iskall? My armor can last and Cleo doesn't have any receptors to feel the cold." Xisuma asked, looking at Cub. The hermit looked hesitant, but he gave a determined nod anyway. His hands opened up, and Iskall watched as a greyish-blue aura began to surround his hand. Soon, a small light of blue ball formed on his palm. Cub reached over to place one of his hands over Iskall's chest- not touching him, leaving a considerable gap between them. 

Iskall let out a shuddered breathe when he felt an unfamiliar sensation go through his body. It was cold and uncomfortable, but the process was done within seconds and Iskall immediately found that he didn't feel as cold as he was before. Iskall could still feel the cold air nipping at his skin but he wasn't shaking anymore. 

"This is all I can do. I'm not sure how long this would last, so we got to make this quick." Cub stated. 

Iskall noticed Doc whispering something to Scar. He also noticed Cleo and Joe exchanging words with Cleo's hand holding onto Joe's forearm. 

"Alright, we're gonna chill in the nether, good luck!" Impulse shouted before shooting himself off from the ground and to the sky. False gave all of them a salute beforefollowing Impulse. Joe gave another worried look towards Cleo before joining the two. Their three bodies immediately disappear from their view. 

"How much time do you think you need to prepare?" Xisuma asked. Doc shrugged.

"Ten minutes tops." 

Nodding, Xisuma tapped something onto a hologram-like panel that appeared in front of him. Iskall saw Doc and Scar vanishing out of thin air, supposedly being teleported to Area 77. 

"Alright, good luck." Xisuma said, tapping onto the panel yet again. 

Iskall's vision went black.

* * *

"You guys are okay!"

Mumbo lifted his gaze up to find Grian and Ren flying over to them. After Iskall's sudden flight and Iris' weird behavior, the hermits figured they should stay in New Hermitville in case something happened. 

The child that was quietly nestled on his lap began squirming when Grian and Ren came into view. Mumbo placed her down and watched as Iris was reunited with her guardians in a hug. 

It was actually a pretty unusual sight, Mumbo realized, as he saw Grian kneel down to Iris' height to hug her tightly, almost as if he was afraid that she would disappear once he let go. Ren was kneeling on one knee, a smile on his face despite the worry creasing his eyebrows. 

He likes to think that he knew both of them respectively for a couple of years now, especially Grian. In fact, Mumbo prided himself for being Grian's friend for almost their entire life, but at that very moment, he couldn't help but feel as if he was looking at another person. 

Mumbo knew Grian's childhood mostly consists of siblings that don't share the same bloodline as him yet having to care for them anyway, so he doesn't exactly doubt Grian's 'parenting' skills. What he didn't expect was Grian's willingness to actually... care for a child. For years he showed no sign of wanting to settle down or wanting to have a child on his own. Grian was a child at heart and loves to mess around. He's also passionate about building and has made so many incredible projects. Never in Mumbo's life would he consider that Grian would show so much affection towards a child he just met. 

Ren, on the other hand, is much more believable. He's a cheerful guy at heart, and overall just a really nice dude. Too nice, Mumbo wondered if anyone got cavities for how much sugar he's throwing at everyone. Though besides that, Mumbo recalled a conversation he had with Ren a few years ago, back around Season 4 or 5. 

He remembered Ren wanting to have a kid of his own someday. A 'cute little rascal, doesn't matter if they don't look like me, teach them how to use a guitar', he said. 

A noise managed to pull Mumbo out from his thoughts. Ren was now hugging Iris with as much love as Grian has given him, though this time Iris had dissolved into loud giggles when Ren managed to find the perfect spot to put his wiggling fingers on. 

"Hello, Grian. How have you been?" Keralis asked. Grian had walked up to them by then, both hands stuffed in his pockets. He shrugged lamely, a small smile on his face. Mumbo gave him a questioning look when he realized just how stiff his body was. Grian took notice.

"I've been doing okay. Ren and I just got back from talking with Xisuma and Joe. Doc was with us but he had to stay behind to talk to our lovely admin about something." Grian explained, glancing briefly at Ren and Bdubs trying to teach Iris how to say 'Red', before looking back at them. "We were just gonna drop by my base when we got Stress' message earlier- passed by Iskall in the nether hub, too."

"Geez, I hope they're okay. I can feel my heart pumping a bit too hard- I'm gonna get a drink." Keralis sighed, jumping off a barrel he was sitting at. He stepped into one of the village houses, leaving Mumbo and Grian alone. 

Mumbo waited for the hermit to leave before pushing himself off the barrel he himself was sitting on. Keeping eye-contact with Grian, he tipped his head to one side, a silent request to talk to him privately. Grian's eyes went wide for a moment, likely surprised but gave a quick nod anyway. 

Making sure that Ren and Bdubs were still occupied with Iris, the two Architechs walked a couple of blocks away and settled by the side of another house. 

"Grian, what's wrong?" Mumbo asked worriedly. He noticed Grian flinching slightly from being confronted, making Mumbo feel terrible. "Something's bothering you..." 

Grian let out what almost resembled a laugh, but it choked when he tried to let it out, and more so it sounded hollow, devoided of any actual happiness in them. "That obvious, huh?" He asked, wrapping his arms around himself as he gave Mumbo almost a sheepish look. 

Mumbo hummed, taking a look over Grian's figure. He looked the same as any other day, though this time he had bags under his eyes. With his slouched posture and dark bags, Mumbo easily deduced that Grian was tired. Not just physically tired, but mentally as well. 

"So obvious." He said, grinning a tiny bit. "You might even compete with Xisuma for how dark your eye bags are."

"Oh shush." 

They laughed, glad that the air between them was of a lighter note now. Grian was smiling, a look of gratefulness on his face. "I'm just tired. Ever since Iris came along, I only slept yesterday evening. Which would have been fine but, y'know, we were fighting against so many mobs during that stormy night, and then the pigman just came out of a blue. Looking after Iris was also a bit of a challenge, too." 

Mumbo raised a questioning eyebrow. "You still want to be a parent?" He teased. Grian rolled his eyes. 

"Temporary guardian."

"Whatever, you like her anyway."

Grian lightly shoved Mumbo's shoulder, causing the taller hermit to laugh. 

"... Still, you want to talk about it? I feel like there's more to this than what you're telling me."

Grian's shoulders slumped ever so slightly. "You got that right."

His gaze shifted to the side. Mumbo tipped his head, confused until he realized he was listening to Iris' squeals from a far. 

"It's about Iris, isn't?"

The mention of the child made Grian sigh. "Yea, but not really, I guess? Well, I suppose I can tell you since he's gonna tell everyone sooner than later- I think. But, uh, Xisuma's gonna leave the server to try and find out where Iris come from and stuff. Apparently there are some links with what's happening between the server and her? I dunno, dude. I was pretty tired."

No kidding, Grian sherlock. 

Mumbo widened his eyes. Holy sherlock- he had to show Grian about the drawing Iris made! He searched through his inventory hastily, much to Grian's confusion. Though he visibly perked when he recognized the notebook Iris had unofficially owned. 

"Did Iris made new drawings?" Grian asked as Mumbo flipped through the pages. He briefly stopped when he recognized Grian as a sketch figure. Messily drawn eyes around his body. 

He moved on after a moment, stopping at the page to point at Bdubs. 

"Oh, that's cool! She's drawing you guys." Grian grinned, tracing a finger against the pen mark. However, his eyebrows scrunched up when he saw the squiggly lines around Bdubs' body. "What's that?"

At the time, Mumbo didn't know what it meant either. But when Stress sent that message he couldn't help but think that maybe, for some odd reason, Iris' drawings are connected to everyone. 

"It happened during the last season." Mumbo began to explain. "You weren't there, but have you at least heard of the nHo?" 

Grian hummed in thought. "Doc mentioned it a few times in the past but no, I don't really know what it is." 

"It's a group that's made up of Doc, Bdubs, Etho, and Beef. They were pretty close but last season some... strange stuff happened." Mumbo shuddered at the memory, forcing himself to lock it away. "It's a bit complicated, but to put it shortly Bdubs went slightly crazy because the jungle magic was getting into his brain."

Grian was lost in the explanation. "I'm sorry- Bdubs got possessed by the jungle?"

"... Yes, pretty much." 

"What does this have to do with-"

"I have a theory." Mumbo flipped the page, revealing the latest drawing Iris has done. Grian visibly looked shocked as he took the book from Mumbo, his hands visibly shaking as he seemed to recognize the frantic inky lines that covered the page. 

"She... did it again." Again? This wasn't the first time Iris went a bit crazy? Grian looked scared and even regretful. "Shit- I wasn't there for her when she-"

"Hey, hey Grian, it's okay. I calmed her down." Mumbo gently said, still unsure of how he was supposed to react. Was the first time that bad? He supposed he can't blame him since Grian is basically one of the 'main' guardians for Iris. Watching your kid spiral out of control can be stressful for the parent. "This was moments before Stress sent her messages. Can you see it?" 

Mumbo didn't specify what 'it' is, but he could see Grian studying the drawing, tilting his head ever so often until he let out a gasp of surprise. "Snowflakes! It looks like snowflakes and there's a figure... inside, right?" 

Mumbo nodded. "Yea! I don't have a lot to go off about but I had a thought. It's strange that Iris reacted that way moments before Stress messaged. It can't be a coincidence, so I thought that maybe Iris and Stress are connected? I don't know how, but they are."

"... That's not a very well-crafted theory, but I like it. We can talk about it with the others when we-"

Grian was interrupted when Bdubs called their names, telling them to check their communicators. It was at that moment that Mumbo forgot to mention why he brought up Bdubs in the first place. 

Meh, he can tell Grian later, for now it seemed like the never-ending vibrations of his communicator was so urgent, it got Bdubs yelling at them 

**< Docm77> It's ready. X i'll send you the coordinates**   
**< Goodtimeswithscar> we're gonna get stress in area 77 for her safety! until then everyone please stay away from the mainland and come to hermitville!**   
**< joehillssays> he's not lying the shopping district is covered in ice now. freezing, too**   
**< renthedog> does this mean we can have a free pass? :D**   
**< Docm77> ... we re gonna keep an eye on you damn hippies**   
**< ImpulseSV> ooo might wanna fix that mouth of yours. you got a kid now **   
**< renthedog> ouch man you moved on that fast?**   
**< Docm77> Ren. You also have the same kid. **   
**< renthedog> :OOOO We're married?!!??" **   
**< Docm77> istg im gonna kick youre ass**   
**< renthedog> kinky ;)**

Mumbo chuckled at the banter between Ren and Doc, until he realized something. 

"Wait, what exactly happened to Stress?" 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY so yea i know raise your pitchforks now for putting aNOTHER cliff hanger but i promise you next chapter stress will be saved


	13. Chapter 13

Xisuma's feet planted on the icy hard ground, nearly slipping on himself if he hadn't caught his balance on time. From behind, he could hear Cub yelling as he fell, followed by Iskall's swearing in his mother tongue while Cleo only grumbled at how windy it was. He adjusted his visor, tapping on a few buttons that allowed him to see through the snowy blizzard, though not by a lot. 

They were on Stress' castle- at least, the outside of it. The large opening door had been swung upon and for some odd reason, the wind seemed to be spiraling out of control from the inside. 

He turned his head to check on his hermits, and frowned when he saw Iskall and Cub already shivering. "Are you two alright?"

"We'll live. Let's just get to Stress." Iskall sighed, already walking past Xisuma to enter the castle. Brushing off the somewhat rude action, the other three followed the technician, figuring that he's been there more times to know where Stress normally sleeps. 

The interior of the castle seemed to take the worst of the blizzard. Everywhere they go, Xisuma could see thickice covering every visible surface, snow piling in corners and sharp icicles forming on the ground. The air was thick and hard to breathe through- nothing Xisuma can't handle, but he could sense Cub and Iskall were already struggling to breathe through the cold air. 

Cleo, though not bothered by the cold, seemed uncomfortable anyway. Xisuma couldn't help but feel bad. He knew how much Cleo missed feeling the warmth- this cold isn't helping at all. 

"Oh no!" 

Xisuma looked up when Iskall gasped. He couldn't help but froze when he saw a couple of dogs laying around in the ice, unmoving. It looked like Stress had a couple of guard dogs and was breeding them. She commanded them to stay here, too. 

"No no no no- Oh, dear no..." Iskall was holding one dog close to his body. "They... They froze to death." 

"No, can't be." Xisuma butted in. "If they have died then they would have poofed right now. We can't freeze to death- the server doesn't allow it, but we still suffer from the effects. NPC mobs are the same. They're frozen but alive." 

Iskall didn't react to his words, only petting the head of the dog and likely whispering something, as well. He gently set the mob down back to the ground. 

"... Let's find her." 

Iskall disappeared into one of the hallways. Xisuma wanted to say something, anything that could provide comfort to his obviously hurting friend, but for some reason, he felt his throat clogged up. He was reaching out to him, too, but dropped his hand in the end, almost like he was feeling dejected despite him not the one hurting. 

"You alright?" Cleo asked, who had stood beside him. Cub was at his other side, also giving him a worried look. Xisuma looked between his friends, almost glad that they were looking out for him, but there was someone who needs help. 

"Yea. But we have to keep moving." Xisuma stated, walking forward to follow Iskall. He could sense Cleo and Cub giving him a look. 

After about a minute of walking through the white hallways, Xisuma realized how much the temperature had dropped since they first arrived- it was even decreasing as they walked further and further down. Iskall had both of his arms wrapped around himself now, visibly shivering but showing no signs of stopping. 

The good news is that with the decreasing temperature, it means they are getting closer to the source- Stress. Bad news, Xisuma failed to consider the possibility that maybe they aren't as prepared as he thought they were. Iskall and Cub's protection spell is slowly vanishing, and Cleo's skin was covered in frost and ice. Xisuma's armor wasn't doing any good, either. 

They could freeze before reaching Stress and no one would be able to get them out without suffering, too. 

None of the hermits usually suffered from hypothermia- in rare cases, it would be because they stayed in the ocean for long periods of time. Stress, no doubt had developed a resistance to the cold ever since she set up base, not to mention Iskall too since they both started in the ice at the beginning of the season. 

But for goodness sake this is crazy! 

Stress... what happened to you? 

"Her bedroom!" Iskall suddenly said from the front, running forward to reach one of the doors. As he placed his hand on the doorknob, he pulled back as if he was burned. 

"Shit, it's too cold!" 

"Stand back." Xisuma pulled Iskall back, letting Cub take him. He inspected the door for a moment, finding out that it was just a double set of spruce wood doors that is covered in a thick layer of ice, it seemed. Xisuma pulled out his pickaxe, and with all his might strike the ice. 

It's as if it was made out of bricks. His pickaxe only scraped the surface of it, making Xisuma grumble a few swear words under his breath. 

"Let me." Cub said. Xisuma didn't know what he was gonna do, but let Cub do his thing as they exchanged places. The admin realized Iskall nearly toppling over and easily reached over to help him keep steady. 

Cub's hands formed a greyish blue aura before forming what looked like grey smoke until it ignited into balls of fire. It was small, and seemed to be getting fighting against the surrounding ice. Cub looked determined and placed his hands closer to combine the two, forming a larger fireball. It glowed brighter and grew larger in size until Xisuma could actually feel a semblance of heat radiating from it. 

With a yell, Cub thrusted the ball at the door, basically blasting it off its hinges. Xisuma was... impressed, to say the least, but let out a surprised gasp when he saw Cub collapsing on the floor. 

Xisuma could feel the faint traces of the vex magic leaking out of Cub through the ice and snow. He went overboard with his magic. 

"Cub! Buddy, no!" Cleo ran by his side and gently lift his head, inspecting any physical injuries. What she found out was much more alarming as she looked up at Xisuma with a fearful look. "His skin is ice-cold! I- I can't feel his pulse!" 

Cub's skin was pale and blue, his lips also in the same shade of blue. Xisuma clicked his tongue, forming apologies in his mind as he pulled up his admin panels.

"Screw it. I'm teleporting him to Scar." 

None of the other hermits protested against his decision. Cub's body, that was being cradled by Cleo, vanished in a blink of an eye, leaving no trace or evidence that he was here except for the vex magic lingering in the air. 

"Stress!" Iskall freed himself from Xisuma's hold much to his dismay, and rushed into the freezing cold room. 

A sudden burst of wind blew out from the door, Xisuma had to stand his ground for a moment. He caught Cleo when she tripped over herself from the sudden wind. 

Her skin was ice cold. 

Cleo pushed herself off from Xisuma and ran into the room. Xisuma followed.

The sudden rush of cold, freezing wind pushed against him, but he held his ground. 

"S-Stop..." 

Xisuma could barely hear the voice coming from the other side of the room, but when he did he snapped his head up to see Stress on the ground, her body curled but arranged that she could see them. Her entire body was covered in white frost, and Xisuma's fear spiked when he saw how ghostly white her skin was, lips blue and eyes sunken. 

Iskall was just four blocks away from her, but he was on one knee, both arms wrapped around himself tightly. Xisuma thought Iskall couldn't handle the cold anymore until he found the reason why he couldn't move. 

Xisuma couldn't lift his feet. 

From where he was standing, he realized that ice had formed around his foot, all the way up to the ankles, preventing him from moving. Xisuma realized why he didn't feel it initially- his feet were numb to feel the icy burn, even if they were covered in thick boots. He could also see Cleo struggling to move, both her feet frozen to the ground. 

Ice can't form naturally like this. It has to be coming from Stress' magic.

Why?

"Stress! It's me, Iskall!" The swede shouted through the wind blowing across their ears. "Honey I know it seems scary but you have to let us help you!" 

Stress wasn't responding as much as Xisuma hoped she was (god, he would rather have her screaming bloody mary because at least he'd know she wasn't dead). Although, her fingers did twitch and she tried to reach for him.

"S...'skall... scared..."

"Oh, I kn- know, but you have to calm down, okay? It's f- f-freezing cold but your fear is making it stronger. C-Come on, can you l-let me reach you?" 

Stress blinked, probably still processing Iskall's request. 

They don't have much time, and quite frankly Xisuma could've easily just teleported Stress into the coordinates at any time with his admin abilities, but it would be cruel to do so. Stress is suffering right now to the overwhelming feeling of magic that seemingly came out of nowhere. Despite popular belief, teleporting is not actually a smooth experience, which is why he made sure that he has the consent of every hermit.

It looked like Stress' confusion and fear amplified her magic. Out of all of them, Iskall was the nearest. Xisuma doesn't know how he'll do it, but Stress has to calm down enough for the magic to weaken. 

"... 'skall..." 

Oh no, Stress was delirious out of her mind. Although, he noticed the ice around Iskall's feet was retreating back to the ground, enough that Iskall actually broke the rest of by smashing his right fist over them. The strength impressed Xisuma, but he remained quiet to not disturb the rather intimate moment between the two. 

The wind was still roaring, still freezing, but Iskall slowly walked up to her anyway. 

He sat down by his friends' freezing form and brought her body close to him. Cleo began reaching out when she saw Iskall's skin turning to ice upon contact, but Xisuma stopped her with a gesture. If he needed to get out of there, Xisuma will get him out of there. 

"Hi." Iskall whispered, smiling down at Stress as if it was just a normal day in the server. Stress' attention was on him now, and faintly, she too smiled. 

"Hi." 

The wind slowed down until it entirely stopped. Xisuma kicked his feet and watched as the ice easily broke through, Cleo doing the same. 

The room was still covered in a thick layer of ice, but it was now considerably warmer than before now that Stress is focused on Iskall instead of the magic in her. 

Xisuma felt himself relax slightly, but they're not done yet. He walked over to Iskall holding Stress and kneeled by her, Cleo doing the same. The zombified player reached a hand over to her friend, stroking her cheek. Stress shuddered at the touch but smiled anyway.

"Oh, I'm glad you're okay, love," Cleo said, and Xisuma swore he saw a tear go down her cheek. 

"Stress, we'll be taking you somewhere safe, okay? We have to go through teleporting, though." Xisuma told her. Stress blinked numerous times but replied with a small thumbs up. "Good." 

He pulled out his communicator from his pocket, and smiled when he saw the messages from the Hermits. Doc and Ren sure know how to rile each other up. He sent a quick message to the others, saying they're on their way to Area 77. 

"Alright, Stress, just focus on Iskall okay?" 

Iskall tightened his hold on Stress, and Xisuma vaguely remembered a memory of when Mumbo and Stress were teleported back to Hermitville in a similar posture. 

"3... 2... 1." 

Xisuma pressed 'Enter', and briefly, his vision turned black.

* * *

Doc placed his metallic hand on the glass, watching the swirls of greyish blue and purple magic surrounding the inner walls. Scar was inside the room, his eyes clenched shut, hands making some kind of ball as he channeled his magic into it. Soon, Scar thrusted his hands outwards, the magic covered the room in another layer once more. 

The room was already prepared for Stress' arrival. It was furnished and had a magic barrier inside so anything magical that happened won't be affected outside of it. However, Scar said he wanted to add another layer of magic. 'Just in case anything happened,' was what he said, but Doc knew better. 

Scar believed his magic wasn't strong enough. 

Doc doesn't doubt Scar's magic abilities. In fact, Doc was even surprised that Scar would put himself so lowly. Both Scar and Cub are the only known players in the server to have any magical capabilities- even if they have no magic background, to begin with. Okay, maybe the magic came from a mob that brainwashed them for like two seasons but they have control over it now. 

(He forced himself to forget the jungle and Bdubs)

He sighed, pulling his hand back. He supposed he can't blame him- it's hard to accept a part of you that made you do terrible things in the past. At the very least, he was proud of Scar and Cub for putting their fears aside to help Stress. 

Which... he realized it has been about ten minutes since they sent that message. 

The other hermits were messaging non-stop. Most were confused, others just concerned. They didn't know what was happening but with their worry for Stress, they decided to give support by coming to Area 77. Doc didn't particularly like that idea- firstly because they are still in progress of making Area 77, so it was still incomplete. And secondly, the hippies are then given a chance to poke around the area and find out more about their secrets- and more importantly, where Grian's time machine was located. 

Which is why he ensured the room they chose for Stress was actually somewhere above ground. They could have gone to Falsewell but even the town was still in construction. 

Doc sighed to himself, letting his mechanic fingers drum against the glass. Scar was breathing heavily now, but as they locked eyes he gave him a thumbs-up and a smile, telling him that he was done. Doc nodded and waited for Scar to leave the room. 

"I'm gonna check on the others, are you coming?" Doc asked. Scar politely shook his head no. 

"No, I'll stand by here in case Stress comes. I could also keep Cub company while doing so." 

Doc nodded in understanding. It came at a surprise when Cub was suddenly teleported near Scar, his body covered in frost and barely breathing properly. They had immediately set up a room across from Stress to heal up and recover from his hypothermia. Although he was breathing as normal, he was unconscious, which later on Scar found out was because he had used a rather powerful spell that used up most of his energy. 

At least he was okay now... 

They exchanged some more words before separating. Doc walked through a door that lead to a large common room- enough to hold all the hermits into one space. Standing at the doorway, he could see basically everyone there meddling around and doing their own stuff to distract themselves from their worries. 

Joe was making a large meal for everyone to eat, accompanied by Zedaph and Tango who were helping him prep ingredients. They were all conversing with one another in an idle chat. TFC was quietly reading a book by one of the armchairs, though his eyes kept on looking up at Impulse and False messing around with Iris. Grian and Ren were talking on the couch, deep in some conversation. Mumbo was playing chess against Bdubs with Keralis showing his support behind him (though the bandana-wearing builder seemed to be losing terribly). Jevin and Python were having a serious rock paper scissor match.

Doc walked over to Grian and Ren first and sat down by the latter. The dog hybrid visibly perked up upon seeing him and shifted so that he could face him better. "Anything? How's Cub?"

"He's alright, just unconscious from overexerting himself with magic. How's the kid?" 

Iris was up on Impulse's shoulders as she was awestruck by False expertly turning a butterfly comb between her fingers (he recognized it as being Iskall's). As much as it was dangerous, Doc believed False knew what she was doing. Besides, it's keeping the kid occupied. 

"Ren and I were talking about Iris." Grian said. "Mumbo brought up the idea that somehow, Iris is connected to what happened with Stress. We all know that before Iris got here Stress didn't have any magic, right? It was only recently that it started acting up and... yeah." Doc noticed that Grian had Iris' drawing book on his lap. Grian noticed his gaze.  
  
"Anyway, it suddenly reminded of the time Iris had her 'episode' while drawing yesterday. Mumbo told me it happened again today, see?" He showed Doc the latest drawing. It was scribbled all over but he was quick to catch on that it looked vaguely like a snowflake. Grian let Doc take the book from him. "I think Iris' drawings aren't just any drawings. They're important."

"Some of em' anyway," Doc said, trying to resist the urge to laugh at how absurd Mumbo look in Iris' drawings. His eyes flashed to a sketch version of Bdubs, and felt his body tense up upon seeing the lines wrapping around Bdubs' body, looking a lot like vines in this case. He breathed deeply, telling himself that it's just a drawing. "Does everyone else know about this?" 

"Some, though not all. Mumbo, Bdubs, Keralis and maybe Iskall knew since they were there, but besides that... well... it's best if we don't worry the others too much. There's already so much going on and we don't have a lot of answers as of yet." 

Doc nodded, finding Grian's serious tone a bit nerve-racking. He doesn't know why. "Of course. We got to fix that language barrier between us and Iris first- she doesn't understand English, right? Only Galactic?"

"Yea, but get this! Within the time Iris has been with us, she recognized our voices and what we seem to ask, and reacts a lot more if we give her gestures. It's pretty cool, right?" Ren said, his face lighting up with pride. "I really can't wait to hear her first words!"

"You are so deep in this." Doc shook his head, but grinned anyway. Somewhere deep inside him, he felt his chest tightening upon hearing Ren's words. A sense of familiarity that he does not recognize. He placed his hand over his chest- where his heart is. Or where he assumed it is, since some of the skin of his left side was also replaced with metal. 

He pushed that feeling aside when he felt his communicator vibrate. 

**< Xisuma> stnad by**

"What does he mean-?"

Before Grian could ask his question, Scar began shouting from the other room, catching everyone's attention.

"THEY'RE HERE!" 

Doc had never seen so many hermits stand up at once. Luckily for him, he moved fast enough so he got to the room first. He briefly saw Scar placing Stress on the provided bed before turning to everyone else. 

"Sorry, all of you please stay outside. It'll be too crowded." He swore False was giving him daggers, but Ren who was beside her placed a hand on her shoulder, gently shaking his head side to side. Everyone looked bummed out, if not concerned and very lost at why Stress suddenly had magic or something along those lines. Doc reminds himself to tell the others the full story, later. 

"Can I at least come with? I wanna check on Cleo." Joe asked, raising his hand while doing so. Doc was about to disagree but stopped when he saw emotions swirling around his dark blue eyes. They were more than just concern, but he couldn't place exactly what it was. Sighing to himself, he nodded and allowed Joe to squeeze through the space between him and the door. 

"Some of you can keep Cub company. And some of you can help distract the kid." 

Surprised, the hermits turned their attention to the girl mentioned. She was in Grian's arms, shaking and mumbling things to herself. Iris looked scared and confused, feeling the heavy atmosphere around her. 

"Right, sorry kiddo," TFC said, the older man patting the top of white hair. Iris didn't move much. 

Everyone went their separate ways after that- either to keep Cub company or to go back to the common room to wait. He noticed False leaning against the wall by Cub's door (which was opened wide, revealing Tango, Impulse, and Python inside), her arms crossed and deep in thought as if contemplating something. Doc also noticed Grian passing Iris to Ren- much to Iris' protest as she reached out to the gremlin prankster. Ren managed to calm her down so that she settled back into his chest. 

"I'll be in the common room." He told the two of them, smiling as he walked back to the direction of the common room, passing by Mumbo who looked nervous upon spotting Doc and Grian. 

"Mumbo?"

"I... I wanna stay by Stress' side." Mumbo said. Doc opened his mouth, but found that he couldn't say anything so he closed it back down. Mumbo saw it as his chance to talk.

"I know I can trust you and Scar to help Stress but she's still my friend. A- And Iskall is also there, and he doesn't look very good himself. I just want to make sure they're okay." Mumbo explained quickly, almost at the point of rambling. Doc crossed his arms. 

"Mumbo."

"Yes?"

"Shut up and go inside." 

Mumbo's eyes widened, but he smiled and nodded in gratitude. The door opened to reveal Cleo and Joe walking out together. Cleo looked tired, and her skin looked much greyer than it was before. The poet had a hand on her back, keeping her steady. "Howdy, fellas..." Joe murmured, loud enough for them to hear before going to one of the spare rooms, probably to talk to Cleo in private or something. Doc let them. 

Grian was looking through the window and to the room. Through the layer of magic, they could all see Stress being hooked up into a machine that Doc made. It was simply to make it easier for the patient to breathe, but it looked unnerving. Stress seemed fine, overall, and Scar was tending to her using his magic. 

Xisuma was leaning against the wall, breathing heavily. Iskall was sitting on the chair beside him, clutching his right arm close to himself. He looked... numb. 

"Come on, let's go inside." 

Grian entered first. Doc saw the look of conflict on Grian's face when he saw Stress, but he went over to Iskall's side, grabbing a chair while doing so. Doc realized Grian wanted to stay near Stress, but afraid he would mess with Scar's magic or something. Mumbo followed suit, taking another chair and stationing himself at Iskall's other side. Wearily, Iskall leaned over to the mustache man and placed his head on his shoulder, his lips quivering. 

It was weird to see the Architects in the same room as their semi-comatose ice supplier. Their Area 77/Hippie commune shenanigans must have lasted so long because all Doc could see in Grian was just him and his stupid flower crown and rainbow-feathered necklace. 

Doc was still standing by the door when Xisuma pushed himself off the wall, coming over to Doc's side. Before the creeper hybrid could speak, Xisuma placed a cold hand on his shoulder, eyes glazed in what he could only describe as tired.

"We leave tomorrow morning." The admin whispered, so soft Doc nearly didn't catch it. He dropped his hand and left the room. 

Two-thirds of the Architects were looking at him with questioning looks. Doc shook his head. He'll tell them later. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heya guys! a quick update 
> 
> i'll be finishing up the rest of xisuma's asks very soon so for now i need your help. which hermit would you want to ask next?
> 
> 1\. Mumbo  
> 2\. Joe & Cleo  
> 3\. Anyone else lol
> 
> yes i know the first two options were part of the previous ones but i figured why not? and if theres anyone else you want to ask you can choose them instead
> 
> and i just want to briefly say that i really really appreciate all the support youve given in this story  
> AND! if you didnt know, theres a side story that shows Doc's origins that is canon in this story! its part of the 'Iris' series that i made so go give that a read ! I'll be doing more side stories- mainly origin stories of the hermits if you are all interested? 
> 
> anyway, hope you guys are doing well in these shitty times :,)


	14. Chapter 14

Stress was stable. Cold, but very much still stable. Iskall didn't know how much time has passed, only aware that Grian and Mumbo made sure he was never alone. They were talking somewhere in the back, Iskall wasn't focusing on where. 

Scar did all that he could, and Iskall was grateful. Not to say that he didn't do enough- Stress' condition was... sensitive, so to speak. Iskall didn't understand how magic works, so he could only rely on Scar's explanation that while Stress was physically alright, the problem lies in the magic in her. Scar can't tell if the magic was already in her since spawn or if another magical being gave it to her. 

Whatever it was, Stress' magic was still unstable. Her hand was ice cold, and patches of her skin would be layered with frost before melting due to room temperature. Iskall was gently holding Stress' hand the entire time, just caressing her knuckles with his thumb in hopes that Stress could feel him say 'Hey, I'm right here'. 

Her hand was cold against his touch and Iskall wondered if Stress could still feel warm inside. 

Iskall let out a small gasp of surprise when he saw a crystal of ice suddenly forming at the wall nearest to Stress, before somehow melting itself away without any evidence of its existence. He frowned, looking back down at Stress who had her eyes scrunched up in pain. 

"It's magic. It's still overwhelming her." 

Grian appeared by his side. Even though Iskall had his eyes on Stress, he could still sense Grian's worry radiating off of him. 

"Isn't there anything we can do to help?" Iskall softly asked, giving her small hand a squeeze. "Having too much magic is bad, isn't?"

"Usually." Grian shrugged. He grabbed a nearby chair and placed it by Stress' bed, sitting beside Iskall. "It's mainly because the bodies of those who posses magic often times cannot handle its power. Scar and Cub gained magic that is enough for their body to handle and control. Stress... She's different, somehow. The magic overwhelmed her, but it didn't destroy her."

Iskall shuddered. "Are you saying Stress could've died?"

Grian gave him a sympathetic look. "Not could've. She _should've_ died by now, with how much magic she has." 

He didn't want to hear anymore. 

His friend sighed. "Sorry, Iskall. I shouldn't have said that." 

Iskall shook his head. He knows Grian means well, so he wasn't angry. If anything, Iskall was just glad the universe decided to give Stress a miracle to leave. 

"... Y'know, Stress doesn't usually talk about her homeworld." Iskall began. "But in her homeworld, it was full of magic. Pretty much a living fantasy. But she told me ever since she was young, she couldn't control any magic or even sense that there was any in her. That's why she left because she didn't feel like she belonged." This was the only thing Iskall knew about Stress's past. Stress didn't like to mention what her family was like, and Iskall didn't force her. 

Grian looked surprised by this. "... So she still has a magical background, but had no magic herself? That... That could explain it..." 

"Grian, my dude, I don't understand a single thing you're saying."  
  
Grian chuckled and patted Iskall on the back. "It's alright, you need rest, man."

Not as much as Xisuma, which Iskall was reminded that maybe he should check up on his admin soon. But he really doesn't want to leave Stress alone in fear that when she wakes up, she'll panic and get overwhelmed with magic, turning this small room into a mini icebox. 

Iskall felt Grian giving him another pat on the back before standing up. The door opened and shut, telling the technician that his friend had went out. A little glance over his shoulder, and he could see Mumbo and Grian talking through the window. 

"When you wake up, we're gonna have a sleepover, okay?" Iskall said, scooching his butt forward, staring at Stress intensely. "You always complain that the boys and I barely rest, and I also know you're a sucker for sleepovers. We can have one here so you can rest properly- heck, maybe even bring Iris along, whaddya say?"

Stress remained unresponsive, but Iskall continued to talk.

"You must be feeling cold, hm? We'll get so many blankets here Doc is gonna be pissed, and then wrap each other in a burrito blanket. Remember the cookies you always bake for us when you supply us with ice? Yea, I doubt I can replicate the recipe, but I'll also make cookies for us to enjoy. Just... wake up when you're ready, okay?"

Her hand remained cold, but it would be okay, Iskall told himself. If her magic prevents her from feeling warm inside, then Iskall would happily share his. 

Iskall tried to ignore the feeling in his chest that something was wrong in all of this. 

Stress doesn't have magic... So where the hell did the magic come from? 

The only reply he got was frost covering the hand clutching on Stress', before melting away.

* * *

"Joe, I said I'm fine."

"You may not have most of your receptors but you still have _some_. Your skin is ice cold and you look miserable. Sit down and at least let me help you feel better." 

Joe couldn't help but feel frustrated with Cleo's protests. Joe was already worried that Cleo would be helping in getting Stress, but it took half an hour until they got back! Half an hour and he was worried sick for his friend! The other hermits took notice of his rather bizarre behavior, but Joe doesn't even care! He spent ten minutes stress-cooking, give him a freaking break!

"Joe..."

Finally, _finally_ , Joe let out a gasp of air, chest heaving in and out as he felt the concern and frustration leave his system. He managed to turn to give Cleo a look, and nearly deflated when he saw the sad eyes belonging to Cleo. She was sitting on the edge of the bed, her arms wrapped around herself. Her legs were also pressed closely together instead of crossed like she usually does. She doesn't even have her flower crown. 

"Joe, it's okay." Cleo softly said, and Joe nearly broke down. His friend must have noticed the change in behavior because she opened her arms, beckoning Joe to come over. He complied and silently sat beside her, adjusting their positions so that they could easily hug each other on the bed.

"Shh... Joe, calm down, okay? You're all worked up over this." 

Joe had his head tucked on the crook of her neck, his arms wrapped loosely around her midsection, hands locked together. He inhaled and smelled the faint fragrance of the perfume. Cleo said that zombie guts don't smell that good, but Joe hardly remembered a time he smelt anything rotten from her body. He let the smell of flowers go through his system, allowing himself to relax and tell himself that Cleo was okay.

Cleo was still comforting him through words and touch. Her fingers ran through his hair, her other hand holding him close. Her body was... was cold. It's always cold or at the very least at room temperature, but this cold was unwelcoming. Joe only held her tighter, hoping that maybe she would warm up with the help of his body heat. 

"I'm sorry, it's just... many things have been happening." Joe lamely said, closing his eyes. At that point, Cleo had taken his glasses and place it by the empty spot on the bed. "With Iris and the server, it's hard to keep up. I just don't want anything bad to happen to you." 

"Joe, honey, we can respawn."

"Anything can happen." 

Cleo went quiet but sighed as she unlatched herself from Joe. He nearly whined at the loss of contact but stopped when Cleo placed her hand on his chest, where his heart would be. 

"It's beating pretty fast." Yea, Joe realized that, too. He placed his hand on top of Cleo's and for a while, they just stayed in that position. Out of all the years they have known each other, Joe realized just how intimate this was. There were many moments where they share the same room, the same bed, and even told stories that lasted throughout the night. 

But this was different, he could tell. There was something different about being alone with Cleo after a dangerous mission to save their friend. 

Joe could possibly guess what that feeling was, but he doesn't want to make any assumptions just yet. It would be childish of him to act recklessly now.

Whatever the case, he's just glad Cleo's alright. 

"Feeling better?" Cleo asked, pulling her hand away. It made Joe sigh in disappointment but still, he smiled and nodded. 

"Yes. Sorry for being frustrated earlier... You really gave me a scare." 

"Hey, if I were you, I would also be pissed at myself." 

The two chuckled, and Joe was glad that the tense air between them was over. "Still, at least drink a health potion? For me?" He put out his bottom lip, giving Cleo a puppy look that mad her groan loudly, shoving him on the shoulder he nearly fell off the bed. 

"Fine, fine! Just don't give me that look." Cleo huffed, making Joe laugh. He complied and stood up, walking over to the nearest chest to see if they happen to store any potions inside. 

Well, there are a bunch of items scattered inside the chest, making Joe sigh for its lack of organization. Still, he saw a faint glow of red inside and dug his hand in, searching for the potion.

"... I was kind of dead-weight, y'know?" 

Joe hummed, managing to find the red potion with a satisfying grunt. "That's a terrible pun, dear Cleo. And you might want to elaborate on what you mean."

Coming back to Cleo, he passed her the red potion. Cleo pulled the cork out and chugged it in one go, before replying. "When I was with Xisuma and the others to get Stress, I didn't do anything. I... I was pretty useless." 

"Cleo... come on, don't sell yourself so short. I'm sure you were a valuable asset in saving Stress."

Cleo scoffed. "Hardly doubt so."

Yea, okay, Joe can see what this is now. Cleo's having one of her doubts consume her and after that intimate moment they shared? Joe will not allow that, nuh uh. No. 

Joe settled beside her again and pulled out a slip of paper from his pocket. He wordlessly passed it to Cleo, who took it with a questioning look on her face. She didn't ask anything, and only opened the slip of paper to reveal what Joe knows was a drawing of both Cleo and Joe, made by Iris herself. 

The drawing was ripped out from a page of Iris' book it seemed like. With the added colors, she would assume one of the hermits found some crayons and gave it to Iris. There were some Galactic words on the bottom, messily written and almost unreadable. 

"Iris drew this?" Cleo asked, even though they both know who did it. Joe nodded anyway. 

"She saw me getting worried when you didn't come back yet, so she drew me and you with some crayons Zed found."

Cleo's finger traced the lines on the paper. "What does it say?" She asked, referring to the Galactic words. 

Joe looked down at the words. When Iris initially wrote it, Joe found it difficult to understand her writing. It took maybe about five minutes, but he managed to understand that what Iris was trying to say... Was gibberish. 

Not to say Iris' handwriting was that bad, but Joe managed to translate it to 'Xomnu' which wasn't a word at all. Maybe it was Iris' handwriting but, why would she even write that? 

"Xomnu, or something." Joe shrugged. "I think she just wrote it in a spur of a moment." 

Cleo nodded. "Right... Right, okay."

They fell into silence. Almost faintly, Joe could hear the other hermits from the common room. He wondered what they were doing or how much time had passed. 

"I think we should be heading back-"

"Wait." 

Joe stiffened when he felt Cleo's fingers wrap around his wrist, effectively stopping him from going any further. He turned, wondering what was the holdup but finds himself lost in her eyes, quite literally. 

Was it always this green? Like, like emeralds, glimmering in a dark cave? The rarest gem in the universe.

They didn't exchange any words, but strangely enough, Joe seems to know what she wanted to say. So he nodded and sat back down. 

Cleo visibly relaxed, and Joe felt their pinkies intertwine with one another.

* * *

"So, which one of you is the daddy?"

"What the absolute-" 

Ren punched Tango on the shoulder hard, finding satisfaction when Tango let out a small wince of pain. Though it didn't hide the smile on the Netherborn's face, which only encouraged Ren's face to turn a brighter shade of pink. Luckily for the dog hybrid, the other Hermits in the common room didn't seem to hear Tango's rather inappropriate question, too occupied in watching Jevin and Zedaph teach Iris some words. 

It... failed. Iris was too distracted by too many things to actually focus on what the two mob hybrids were saying. In the end, Jevin just sighed and called it quits. He switched it out with TFC, who easily settled beside Iris and start some idle chat with her. 

"How's Cub?" Ren asked, hoping his face had cooled down. Tango's playful expression softened into one of worry, though the Netherborn masked it with a small smile. 

"Cub's alright. I visited him once everyone went their own ways, and surprise! Cub actually woke up five minutes after we came."

Tango, Python, and Impulse had returned to the common room just a couple of minutes ago, too... "Oh, did Scar want to talk to him or something?"

"You guessed it right. After tending to Stress, he came straight to Cub and was relieved as hell. You should've seen Scar's face! It was as if he hadn't seen him in like a long time." Tango sighed. "But, well, after that he asked us to give them some privacy. I think they want to talk about what happened with the vex magic."

Ren frowned. He heard about Cub using vex magic earlier, but to what extent he's not sure. He hadn't grown up in a childhood where he was surrounded by magic, so anything arcane related was out of his comfort zone. Even though he didn't think it was weird for Scar and Cub to talk about it, he noticed Tango had a look of uncertainty on his face. 

"What's up? You seem pretty lost in thought, my man. You need a listening ear?" 

Tango snorted when Ren twitched his left ear in a joking manner. 

"Eh, just... It got me thinking, that's all. Because out of everyone in the server, Scar and Cub are the only ones who posses magic... of course, it's vex magic but still magic nonetheless. Besides them, Xisuma and I, having been born in different realms, also have magic but we don't use it as often. The rest of the hermits? They're either human or hybrids, without knowing how to use magic in the first place."

Unconsciously, Ren mumbled. "Bdubs got possessed by a jungle." 

Tango heard him but shrugged. "That's different. Unlike the vex, who _gave_ the magic to our Concorp boys, the jungle _possessed_ Bdubs, used him like a puppet. He still has fragments of that magic around him, but it does not mean Bdubs has the magic to begin with." The Netherborn actually looked over to the builder, who was animatedly telling a story to Iris. If she knew what he was saying, she did not show it. However, she did start nibbling on an apple slice courtesy to TFC. 

"Anyway, I just think it's weird. Stress doesn't have magic, so why now? Unless Stress has some tragic backstory she refused to share us, which would explain how she got magic."

"I don't think Stress would hide something like that." Ren frowned, not understanding the situation, either. "If anything, she would've told Iskall, right? They know each other like the back of their hands, and I never heard Iskall say anything about her having magic."

Before Tango could reply, a certain red-sweater hermit appeared beside the Netherborn. "Sup' guys, are we discussing how Stress got her magic?" 

Ren and Tango gave each other surprised looks. How did Grian know?

"You're not the only one," Grian said as if he was reading their minds. "Almost all of us had that question since earlier today. You felt it, didn't you Tango?"

The question was lost in Ren, but he saw a look of shock on Tango's face before it morphed into understanding, and nodded his head. "Yea... It doesn't make sense." 

"None of this makes sense." 

Ren frowned, not understanding what his two friends were talking about. Was it something magic related? He supposed he could understand Tango knowing about magic, but how did Grian know so much about it? He should ask him later. 

Or now, but he saw the look of urgency on Grian's face. "Sorry, guys. I got to get some food for Iskall. It seems like he'll be staying by Stress' side for a while and he looks pretty out of it."

The dog hybrid nodded, ears flattened as his worry for Iskall tenfold. "I wish there's something else we can do to help." 

Grian gave him a sympathetic look and patted him on the head much to Ren's surprise. "There is." He tipped his head to the side, directing Ren's attention to the young girl he began to grew fond of. 

Impulse and Zedaph were keeping Iris occupied. It came to a pleasant surprise when he realized the two were actually teaching Iris their names by writing them down on cards and pointing them to each hermit. 

Even though Iris didn't seem to understand the words, it looked like she understood the shapes of the letters and which arrangement of letters belonged to each hermit. 

Impulse got distracted by Jevin, causing him to drop his cards on the ground. Iris, ever the curious girl, picked the cards up and looked through them. 

She picked out a card with the name 'Zedaph' and showed it to the hermit that owns the name. Zedaph widened his eyes, and based on many gasps that came from the other hermits, they were surprised with Iris' intelligence. 

Oblivious to their reactions, Iris picked out another card, this time with the words 'TinfoilChef'. It took a while of just looking around before she found the bearded hermit, and ran over to him to give him his card. 

"Thank you, Iris." TFC grinned, patting her on the head. 

"She's growing up so fast." Tango said, wiping a fake tear from his red eyes. Both Ren and Grian nudged him on the side, causing the Netherborn to let out a painful wince. 

Iris repeated the same thing. She would pick out a card, look at the shocked faces of the hermits, before finding her target and giving them the card. It's almost funny, because Iris looked like she was treating this like a game while everyone was still processing just how smart this girl was. 

Eventually, everyone's names were picked out except for a couple that Zedaph and Impulse weren't able to pin-point. 

Ren, Grian, Doc, Tango, Mumbo, Stress, Iskall, Joe, Cleo, Scar, Cub, False, Xisuma. 

The hybrid could see why Iris wasn't able to identify which name belonged to who. As they were stuck in their conversation, the other hermits were basically in Iris' line of sight. Impulse and Zedaph had made sure that when they were pointing at the names, Iris could clearly see them. It maybe wasn't the case for the three of them. 

As for the others? Ren realized that Doc and Xisuma were nowhere to be found. He knew Mumbo was keeping Iskall and Stress company, and he knew Scar was with Cub. He assumed False was still keeping guard by Cub's door for some odd reason. Joe and Cleo, however, he forgot about. He only guessed that the two are privately talking somewhere. 

Iris, who still have the remaining cards in her hands, walked over to the three hermits and looked up at them, almost sheepishly as she fumbled with the cards. 

"It's okay Iris. Maybe we could...?" Tango looked like he was about to suggest pointing at which cards were theirs, but Iris pulled back, shaking her head no. Ren's tail unconsciously wagged due to the cute sight. 

She was in deep concentration, looking between the cards as if it was the biggest test she will ever take. Then, with slightly uneasy hands, she passed each card to each of them. 

Ren looked down at the card, and smiled. 

_Ren_

Based on Tango's pleased expression, it seemed like Iris had also guessed correctly. Although, Grian let out a loud 'wOt?!' as he read his card. 

"Okay, which one of you did this! I know it was one of you!" Grian accusingly said, pointing at all of them. Ren caught glimpse of the card that was on his other hand and laughed loudly as he realized one of the hermits put 'Grain' on the card instead of his actual name. 

Iris made a worried noise when she saw Grian's reaction, but Ren only pet her head affectionately, calming her. "Don't worry, they're just teasing Grian," Ren explained softly, smiling at her. Seeing Ren not upset by Grian, Iris calmed down. 

She looked at the remaining cards with a slightly confused look, as if she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do. 

"We can try to look for the other hermits later on," Ren suggested, petting her head. 

Iris didn't respond, although she does turn her head to a certain mob hybrid with interest. 

Jevin was talking to Impulse and Python. He made a motion to Impulse, of which the other replied by giving his friend a small piece of a sea lantern with an unsure look. Python just seemed amused. The slime hybrid then stuck the lantern into his head, comically lighting his whole body up like a walking lamp. 

Ren didn't know Jevin can do that, but whatever the case, it immediately caught Iris' attention, and quickly she scrambled over to Jevin to inspect him closer. Ren followed, just to make sure she doesn't hurt herself. 

"See! I told you she'll like it!" Jevin grinned widely at the other two with smugness. "You didn't believe me!"

"Well, I don't think she would find the process of literally chucking a sea lantern in your head quite appealing." Python said, narrowing his eyes slightly. 

Iris was still looking at Jevin with such intensity, it reminded Ren of when she kept on staring at Grian's sweater, Ren's shirt and Doc's eye that one time. 

... Wait a minute. 

"Hey, Iris! Wanna look at this?" Ren had pulled out his diamond shovel, much to the confusion of others. However, Iris took the shovel from his hands, letting out an 'oompf!' kind of sound as the weight of the spade caused her to drop it on the floor. Still, it didn't deter her, if anything Iris sat down by the shovel, looking at the diamond surface and tracing a finger over it. 

"What'cha doing?" Grian asked, a shulker box tucked under his arm, likely the food he would be bringing to Iskall. He let out a small gasp when he saw Iris looking at the diamond spade with interest. "Whoa, you don't think-?"

"Heck yea it is!" Ren exclaimed, literally vibrating on the spot. The other hermits were utterly confused with the excitement happening between the two of them, but really it's not quite the strangest thing they have seen. 

What is strange, is the fact that Xisuma and Doc seemed to have disappeared. Where'd they go? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay but im making it obvious here about the mystery regarding stress' magic, right? bet that you all could figure out where it came from before these hermits do (coughcough please figure it out i had this idea since the beginning of the chapters and its taking me weeks to get here god dammit)
> 
> ANYWAY looks like Joe and Cleo won the poll! sorry mumbo, you'll get ur spotlight next time  
> so by the time the next chapter is posted, the ask box for joe and cleo will be open and you all are free to bombard poor cleo and joe about their definitely not love life 
> 
> also thank you again for your support these times have been taking a toll on me motivation but im pushing through them! hope you all are doing okay
> 
> and yes, doc and xisuma are fine, dont worry about them


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hellohello first of all i apologize in advance. the chapter here was lowkey rushed and im quite dissatisfied but i dont really know what else to do

Doc and Xisuma were nowhere to be found until late in the evening. 

Well, more like Doc was the only one that returned late in the evening. Based on the number of hermits that ended up turning the common room into one huge slumber party, he realized that they don't seem too keen on leaving the area any time soon. 

He would've complained about it, but he was too tired that he didn't react when Tango threw a pillow on his face with deadly aim. 

"Doc! My man, where've you been?" Ren questioned, lounging on the couch with his head resting on a pillow and his legs hanging over the armrest. He had a blanket over his middle, and with his sunglasses stowed away on a nearby coffee table, it looked as if he was about to fall asleep. But with Doc's entrance, it made everyone awake again. 

Doc let out an 'oof' sound when Iris ran up to him and slammed against his legs, wrapping her arms around it. 

"Nice to see you too, kid," Doc mumbled, loud enough for her to hear before patting her on the head. Iris grinned widely at the physical affection and ran back to where False and Impulse were, jumping onto a pile of pillows between them. As the others laughed, Doc answered Ren's question. 

"Attempted to find our lovely and sleep-deprived admin," Doc said, sighing. He took off his lab coat (he was wearing a sleeveless shirt after being scolded by Scar about his 'show of skin' around the kid) and leaned by the couch where Ren was lying on. TFC, who was settled cozily on his bed and blankets, tossed a spare pillow towards his way. The hybrid caught it and nodded thanks. 

"Xisuma had one of those nights?" False asked, chuckling slightly when Impulse bonked Iris' head with a pillow. "He overthinks things and just goes MIA?" 

Doc shrugged. He spent hours trying to find him, but once the sun began to set it was clear the admin wanted to be alone. It wasn't the first time Xisuma acted this way, and often times the others would leave him be, respecting his privacy. However, Doc (and maybe everyone) knew how little Xisuma was sleeping, and with the sudden decision to leave the server tomorrow, Doc couldn't help but worry that Xisuma was going too far. 

The guy can be stubborn as hell if he wanted to be. 

Still... Doc trusts Xisuma. He knew he isn't unreasonable in his decisions. If he decides to leave tomorrow, then he has a reason for it. 

Doc just hoped that reason doesn't destroy Xisuma. 

"I noticed there's a few missing hermits," Doc said, looking around the common room. Everyone was relaxing and settling down for the night- many had their beds out and were placed in numerous areas. Some were still hanging out on the floor, deciding that the cool surface beneath them was comfortable enough. Though there were a couple of hermits visibly missing from the room. 

"Oh, Scar's staying with Cub in his room. The Architects are with Stress, having their own sleepover. And Joe and Cleo are sleeping in one of the spare rooms." Tango helpfully supplied, lying upside down on the floor where his legs are laying on the bed. The bed was occupied by Zedaph sitting at the edge, messing around with his communicator. 

"Uh-huh..."

"Oh! And did you know Iris likes blue?" Ren suddenly said, poking Doc's temple with his finger that made the hybrid hiss and swatted his hand away. Although, it did make Doc interested in what Ren has to say. "I think she's opening up to more colors now!"

"Is that so?" Looking over, Doc saw Iris cuddling close to False as she talked to Impulse. It was weird to see them like that- not weird on Iris' part, more so unusual to see False being so... openly and physically affectionate towards someone. Maybe it was because Iris was younger and the same gender as False. But even so, he doesn't see False being physically affectionate towards Stress or Cleo, either. 

It's a strange sight, but not truly unwelcoming. 

Iris let out a loud yawn that can be heard throughout the room. False chuckled, tucking a stray white strand of hair behind her ear before softly nudging her to keep her awake. "Looks like it's time for us to sleep. Let's get you somewhere more comfortable, yea?" 

In the end, she simply walked over to where Ren was. But before that, Iris gave Doc a side-hug before climbing onto the couch and snuggling right into Ren's side. 

Every hermit was looking at him now. 

"Don't." He warned. 

They only let out soft chuckles at his reaction. Some had the expression that they want to tease him, but it was obvious they were all too tired to do so.

Doc frowned, not really wanting to ruin their rather content mood, but since they would be leaving tomorrow... It's more than likely they'll still be asleep by the time they leave. So if anything, right now would be a good option to tell them.

He cleared his throat, which effectively managed to catch everyone's attention on him except for Iris, who laid fast asleep beside Ren on the couch behind him. Doc sighed, leaning his body back on the couch and giving Ren a glance, before speaking. 

"Xisuma and I will be leaving the server tomorrow morning." 

It was silence after that, their looks of shock and worry overwriting the content feeling they may have a few minutes prior. It made Doc feel slightly guilty, but this was important. 

"Okay..." Python said, sitting up from his bed to look at him properly. "What are you guys gonna do? Where are you even going?" 

Doc didn't actually have an answer for that, because he himself doesn't actually know what Xisuma was planning to do. He said he had some connections but never specified who they were or where they could be. 

"All I know is that Xisuma have connections outside the server, people who hopefully know can help with finding out where Iris came from," Doc explained, tipping his head towards the sleeping child. "As for where, I don't even know. Probably a shady server somewhere. My job is to make sure he doesn't die." 

"Well, thank goodness," Tango said, although Doc sense the sarcasm dripping. "Xisuma is already pushing himself hard and now he wants to go out the server sleep-deprived? What the heck is he thinking?" 

"I don't agree with Xisuma's methods either," TFC stated from his spot on the bed. Though, Doc noticed that out of everyone,, TFC seemed the most relaxed (or maybe irritated), since he still had the blanket up and was laying down. "But Xisuma's a grown man, he can make his decisions on his own. If he decides to go out in his state, screw it, let him. It wasn't the first time, won't certainly be the last."

"Weren't you the one that told Xisuma he has one body? That he should take care of himself?" Ren asked TFC, suspicion in his voice. Doc couldn't help but agree with him, TFC was kind and caring yesterday. Now he looked... entirely different. 

TFC let out a sigh, sitting up straight on his bed to look at the hermits in the eye. That was when Doc saw the worry in his face, despite his composed posture. 

"I also said that I'm not telling him to stop what he's doing. I know Xisuma long enough that I know he's one stubborn man when he wants to be." TFC said, and Doc silently agreed. "But... I also know him as one of the most caring and hardworking admins I've ever seen. Ever since he took the role, everything he's done as an admin? He always ensures that all of us are in safe hands, no matter what. Even if he sacrifices hours of rest and sleep everything he has done has always been for our sake."

The hermit then looked over at the sleeping child, and his expression softened. "Even now. I want Xisuma to rest, that is still true, but I trust Xisuma. And I trust that he knows what he's doing. Besides, this isn't the stupidest thing he's ever done." He lamely shrugged, then his eyes went to Doc. 

"That's why I'm glad you're coming with him. I know the place Xisuma is going isn't gonna be safe, so knowing that someone's there to watch his back makes it all the more comforting." 

"Yea! And if something does go wrong, we can always blame it on you!" 

Doc summoned a trident from his inventory and threw it at Bdubs, who let out an unholy shriek as he duck just in time to avoid the weapon from impaling his head. Of course, Doc didn't actually aim for his head, but it was fun to see Bdubs' reaction. 

Although the shriek ended up waking Iris, and she let yawned cutely, rubbing her tired eyes while doing so. 

"Look what you've done!" Jevin scolded, looking at Bdubs who stared back with a gaping expression.

"Me?! Doc threw a trident at me!"

"To be fair, you did deserve that." 

Bdubs pouted at Keralis, who simply stuck his tongue out. Everyone laughed softly, even Doc who was chuckling and hiding his smile within a smug smirk. He raised his hand up, and the trident that was stuck onto the floor behind Bdubs began to rise before flying back into his hand (Bdubshad to duck once more).

As he caught the trident and stowed it into his inventory, Doc caught the look of amazement on Iris' eyes. 

He rolled his eye, and from where he was sitting he could reach his hand close enough to lightly shove Iris' face back into Ren's chest. 

"Okay, enough excitement for one day," Doc said, grinning softly. "Everyone, get your butts to sleep." 

And so everyone did, without much trouble, surprisingly. 

Within ten minutes, Doc finds himself awake in the dark, silently watching everyone's' chest rise and fall in a steady rhythm. Well, all except one. 

Doc saw Bdubs rise from his bed- not in a creepy way, somehow. He collected his bed, went closer to Doc, and placed it back down before laying on the mattress, looking at him with a worried look.

"Tomorrow morning, right?" Bdubs asked softly, as to not wake the others. Doc mutely nodded. 

"... Take care of yourself, please?" It was a silly request because of course, Doc would take care of himself. But he knew why Bdubs was worried.

Etho and Beef leaving still left a mark on them. If Doc somehow dies and doesn't respawn... 

"I'll come back. Promise." Doc said in the end, reaching a hand out to his old friend. Bdubs smiled, and took his hand, squeezing it.

* * *

Xisuma stood on the clearing of Area 77, where the runways laid with numerous light sources to prevent mob spawning. Or, as much of it as possible, considering the state of their server. Still, it was enough that mobs doesn't spawn everywhere.

The sun was slowly rising, giving Xisuma a sense of peace from the past days' events. With the rising day, the phantoms have also stopped spawning. 

"So, only now you decided to show up?" 

Xisuma softly chuckled, turning to eye his partner for the upcoming journey ahead. Doc looked the same as ever, except that Xisuma noticed he was wearing a shirt underneath his lab coat. Has he always been wearing that? Xisuma didn't remember, but it's rather surprising. 

Doc noticed his stare and crossed his arms, giving Xisuma a look. "Hey, don't go thirsting over me now, X." 

"I... I wasn't."

"Just teasing ya'." Doc chuckled. He looked up at the rising sun, and Xisuma can't help but follow his gaze. It was a beautiful sight to see, after all. A sight that would just be a longing memory, for a while. 

Xisuma looked back to Doc, occupied with staring at the sunrise, and felt a sense of guilt in his chest. He was grateful for Doc's help, he really was, but this... this isn't something Doc would fully understand. It's not just a trip to another server to find his connections- it could, if anything, break the laws of what he knows about the universe. 

"Doc... Are you sure you want to come with me? Where we're going isn't... it's dangerous, and it's not something you've ever seen before. There will be no respawns, and fifteen minutes in that... place can be fifteen days in the server."

The creeper hybrid gave him an unimpressed look, hands stuffed in the pockets of his lab coat. Contrasting Xisuma's nervous behavior, Doc looked extremely calm. In fact, he also looked annoyed with Xisuma's warning. 

"And now you're telling me this? I already said, X, I'm coming with you. I already know the risks of permadeath outside the safety of this server, so it's nothing new then what I've been through. Besides, you're finding information that's way out of your common knowledge, and you're one of the smartest men I know out there." 

Doc walked forward until he was standing in front of him. They were only mere inches apart in height, yet Xisuma felt so small now that he was under the gaze of Doc. 

"X... you're worried about something else, aren't you?" 

Xisuma frowned deeply. Subconsciously, he took a step back away from his friend. "... The universe is strange, you know that, right?" 

Doc scoffed but nodded. 

"No matter how much we learn about the universe- how servers work and how we can jump from one world to another- there's always more than meets the eye. Even a hundred years of research about the universe, and still there are many things people don't commonly know." Xisuma grabbed his left arm, sighing deeply. "It's... where I'm going, it's not the usual 'jumping into another server' kind of thing, Doc. It's much more complicated than that, and I can't explain it for it is better if you see it yourself. But it's dangerous."

"... X, may I remind you that at some point I was tortured and had to get cyborg limbs? You know me, man, danger doesn't deter me from making sure my friends are safe."

That would also mean you're risking your life, but Xisuma doesn't say that. Clearly he isn't gonna get rid of Doc- not like he was planning to. He just wanted to ensure his friend knows that where they're going isn't going to be safe. 

... And by the looks of things, Doc doesn't seem to care. 

He supposed he should be grateful for that because it would mean Doc wouldn't have many questions and would just go with the flow. 

"So, we leaving or what?" Doc asked, pulling out what would be known as his universal tab. The admin eyed the holographic-like panel in front of Doc, who was looking through his stuff. It felt weird seeing it again because the only purpose the universal tab has was to give them the option to 'Leave the server' or access their 'universal inventory'. Which is just another word for inventory but you can access it anywhere. 

Xisuma pulled up his own universal tab, scrolling through the options until he came upon his universal inventory. He checked the contents- an enchanted diamond sword (similar to the one he has in the server), a bow and arrows, a few golden apples... A sword made of void material, and a pendant.

He looked up from his panel, noticing Doc staring at him. Softly, he sighed. "You sure you don't want to back out?" 

"Why? Having doubts on me now, X?" 

He shook his head no, and even though Doc can't see it, he was actually smiling under his helmet. 

The word 'EXIT?' filled the screen, with the options _Yes_ and _Return_ at the bottom of it. Xisuma felt... he doesn't know what to feel, quite honestly. It's a mixture of nervousness and maybe a bit of hesitance. It's not the first time he left the server- and he'll only be visiting the places he's already been to, meeting the people he already met up before. But something about this time tells him that it would be different, and if that was a good different or not, he's not sure. 

He looked up at Doc, who had the same panel as him, but his gaze was soft, almost reassuring him silently that everything was gonna be okay, that he will be here to watch his back. 

Xisuma grinned and was reaching for the _Yes_ option. However, before his finger could press on the screen, he heard someone calling out their names. 

They turned back, and Xisuma was surprised to see Joe Hills running towards them with none other than Iris on his tow. He was panting heavily, leaning forward with his hands resting on his bent knees to catch his breath. Iris looked fine, and in fact, she rushed up to Doc to give him a hug. It didn't look like a 'goodbye' hug, more so like a greeting. 

As Doc slowly pet Iris' head, Xisuma walked over to Joe to give him a few pats on the back (his universal tab ended up disappearing while doing so). Joe wheezed, but eventually, he stood up straight. 

Joe's normally neat hair was unkempt, and his shirt had visible creases on them. It looked as if he just woke up and ran out to see them. 

"I... Iris wanted to give you something." Joe said, still panting but not as heavy as before. Xisuma widened in his eyes in surprise, looking at the child who now noticed the attention on her. She pressed herself closer to Doc's legs, hiding her face in the material. 

"Does she now?" Doc asked, smiling lightly. Iris looked at Joe, who was nodding in encouragement. That nod made Iris hum to herself, probably to calm her down, before pulling out two cards that were in the pockets of her guinea pig hoodie. She looked at the cards on her hands, then looked up between the hermits. 

Xisuma made an 'uh' noise but was interrupted by Joe, who put a finger on his helmet, close to where his mouth would be. He made a 'shushing' motion and tipped his head to Iris. "Just watch."

Finally, Iris gave one card to Doc, and the other card to Xisuma. Shyly, she ran back to Joe and hid behind his legs, poking her head out to see their reaction. 

Xisuma looked at the card given to him and didn't fight the smile on his face when he saw his name written on it. 

"She can read English?" Doc questioned, astonished. Seeing the pleasant reaction, Iris giggled and left her hiding spot, running back to Doc to give her a hug. 

Joe shook his head, but he was smiling. "Not exactly. Someone remembered that Iris learns things visually better than verbally, and I think it was Impulse and Zedaph that decided to use cards to teach Iris our names. I don't think she knows what they mean, but she seemed to recognize the shape of the letters and guess from there. Pretty amazing, right?" 

It was actually amazing. Looking over at Doc, Xisuma saw his expression swell up with pride and fondness as he whispered words in his mother tongue to Iris. He was kneeling down so that he could pet her affectionately. 

It doesn't feel as strange anymore to see Doc being so affectionate. 

Still smiling, Xisuma turned back to Joe. "I feel like this isn't just a simple 'come back soon' farewell kind of deal. I already gave you the admin role, if you're wondering about that."

Joe silently chuckled at that. "Figured. But, ah, it's something else actually." From there Xisuma actually noticed a piece of paper in Joe's hand. The poet brought it up to Xisuma, silently asking him to take it. 

Confused but curious, Xisuma took the paper and unfolded it. The paper was small, and he realized that it was actually a piece of torn paper, likely from a book or something. On the paper were of Galactic writing. Terrible, galactic writing. 

He read the word 'Xomnu'.

"This is from one of Iris' drawing page," Joe explained. "She wrote it down and... I guess it's something important? I don't really understand it either but I think it's, uh, a name that Iris knows. Somehow."

Or in other words, this could be something important in finding out Iris' origins. 

"Thank you, Joe. I... I hope I can find what I need out there." Xisuma said, placing the note in his universal inventory. He let out a breathy laugh. "I don't know how long until we get back, too. It could be days or weeks. Time in the universe is quite funny." 

Joe shrugged. "Well, The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you. In the end, it is up to us to make sense of the universe." 

A laugh escaped Xisuma's lips. "That's an interesting way of thinking, Mr. Hills. I noticed you haven't been quite poetic these past few days." 

Again, Joe shrugged, but there was a visible smile on his face, almost as if he found it funny. "Well, it has been a few exciting days, don't you think? I wonder how the server would be like in your absence-"

"Hey, X! We leaving or what?" 

Doc interrupted them, an impatient look on his face. However, the effect of trying to be seen as intimidating was futile when Xisuma realized he was still holding Iris' hand. Rolling his eyes slightly, he bid his good friend a farewell and nodded to Doc. In response, Doc pet Iris head one more time before ushering her to go back to Joe- which she did. 

"Say goodbye now," Joe whispered to Iris, waving at them. Iris mimicked his action and waved them goodbye with a smile on her face- but whether or not she knew if it was a goodbye was left unsure. 

Xisuma watched Joe dragging Iris away, and felt Doc tap him on the shoulder. 

"Alright, we meeting in the hub?" Doc asked.

He nodded and pulled up the tab that still held the option to leave the server. Without a moment of hesitation, Xisuma pressed 'Yes'.

**Xisuma left the server**   
**Docm77 left the server**

* * *

"THESE ASSHOLES DIDN'T SAY GOODBYE!" 

Joe was glad he dropped Iris in Stress' room first so that she didn't have to hear the swears spouting out False's mouth as she quite literally threw her communicator across the room. Some were awake and not bothered by her sudden burst of anger. Others, who were stirred from their sleep, let out loud groans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i did say xisuma and doc were fine
> 
> Guess what fellas? The ask box for Joe and Cleo is up!! Click [HERE](https://ask-the-hermits-and-one-child.tumblr.com/) and ask them stuff!
> 
> and gee i wonder when i will stop w the world building and go to all the fluff


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i really want to write iris interacting w the others but somehow i steered into this direction so oof the plot thickens i suppose

There was something inside of Stress that she had never felt before. Or maybe she had? Stress wasn't quite sure, but the feeling was foreign, yet it was vaguely familiar. Perhaps she had felt it before when she was a young child, but that was so long ago. 

This feeling of... power? Magic, perhaps. It makes the most sense, considering the factors of Stress' life. She felt this feeling go through her body. 

Stress felt it the first time in her bedroom. She didn't realize it at first but the moment she did, it was too late. The magic somehow, somehow overtaken her system, overwhelming her with the cold sensation of the ice power. Stress couldn't control it- she didn't know what was 'it'. 

But now, as she walks through the never-ending plains of darkness, Stress was able to pinpoint the exact feeling of magic in her. 

That magic had more or less evened out through her body, but still, it felt too much for her to take. Stress shuddered, feeling her body freeze and drop in temperature as a spike of magic went up. She couldn't wrap her arms around herself- she realized that she couldn't even see her body. 

Was she dreaming? Unconscious? Wouldn't be the first time... But Stress doesn't like this. She wants to go back to the real world- where there's color and light and flowers. Where there are so many wonderful builds and confusing yet intriguing redstone contraptions. But overall, Stress wants to see her friends again. 

She vaguely remembered someone saving her. She guessed it was Cleo, and perhaps Xisuma was also there? Goodness, she doesn't even remember. What she does remember, is Iskall's face of worry. 

Stress remembered feeling a rush of fear when she saw her green-hoodie wearing friend. She didn't know what was happening at the time- only knew that he was gonna get hurt. So she... what did she even do? 

It doesn't matter, she guessed. She just wants to see Iskall and everyone else and apologize to them for making them worry for her. 

Something wrapped around her hand, and that's when she woke up. 

Stress gasped, eyes snapping open as bright light flooded her vision. She felt something soft under her- a bed, likely, and something pricking her wrists and arms. But most of all, Stress was cold. 

"Stress! Oh my god- Hey! Calm down! It's me!" 

She recognized that voice. It was Iskall! He's here! 

"Iskall..." Stress winced at the rough feeling of her voice, but she had never been happier to hear a familiar voice again. She felt his hands rubbing her knuckles, and it calmed her enough that her vision becomes normal, breathing even, and finally allowed her to see the other Architect boys behind Iskall with relieved faces. By Grian's side, Stress saw a young girl with long white hair. Her grey eyes were looking at her curiously.

"We haven't met yet, have we?" Stress asked, a smile on her face. Iskall pulled a glass bottle of water from his inventory and gave it to Stress, who took it with a grateful smile and chugged it down in one go. Finally hydrated, Stress finds it easier to speak now.

"You must be Iris. I like your hoodie." 

Mumbo snorted, causing Grian to nudge his side hard. Iris had a small card on her hand, and almost shyly she placed it at the edge of the bed, near enough for Stress to take. She went back to hiding behind Grian, only poking her head out to see her reaction. Stress, despite feeling extremely cold, feels her heart warming at the cute sight. 

She picked the card up and was surprised to see her name on it. 

"Good news! She more or less knows everyone's' names now." Iskall explained, smiling widely. 

Stress smiled back, feeling the energy radiating from Iskall that made her better. "That's nice to hear... Hello, love. Don't be shy." She couldn't help but giggle when she saw Iris hiding her head behind Grian. She really was a cutie. 

"So, what happened?"   
Suddenly, all their faces fell. Mumbo was purposely looking away from her while Grian kept himself distracted by Iris playing with his sleeve. Iskall was the only one looking at her, and even then his eyes were anywhere but her own. He looked unsure of what to say. 

Stress realized they were still holding hands. 

"You don't remember?" Iskall asked, instead. Stress frowned, squeezing his hand. 

"Vaguely, though not much. I remember feeling cold and feeling this... this magic inside just taking over and stuff. It's hard to explain, but it was really, really cold. Freezing and- and I'm still cold." At the realization of how cold it was despite not having any air conditioning, Stress began to panic. "Why- Iskall? I don't-"

"Yo, Stress. Here." Grian unceremoniously shoved some golden carrots on her chest. Stress caught the carrots before they fell on her lap and looked at Grian with an eyebrow raised. He shrugged. "You're not yourself when you're hungry." 

"I agree. You look stressed." 

Iskall kicked Mumbo. The latter barely had time to jump out of the way as he shrieked and fell on the floor. Iris was leaning over the hermit with a worried look while Grian laughed his but off. The sight made Iskall roll his eyes as he shifted his attention back to Stress. 

"Welp, eat up. We can talk and chill for a while and stuff." Iskall said, and Stress happily stuffed her face with the golden carrots. It was cold. 

For the next hour or so, the Architect boys were keeping Stress company. For some reason, Iris was keeping her distance, finding comfort in one corner of the room with her drawing book. Every once in a while she would come close, look at her, then go back to her corner. It was odd, but according to Grian, she did some stranger things. 

Apparently Xisuma and Doc had left the server earlier in the morning to find some answers as to what was happening in the server. The other hermits who stayed the night had left to do their personal projects and continue their life- all except for Scar, who was looking after Cub. 

"Oh yea, we will be dropping off the kid to Joe and Cleo's later in the day," Iskall said. "They're gonna be her tutors and stuff." 

Stress nodded, still looking at Iris. Mumbo, at some point, had decided to sit by her and watch her draw until he started drawing as well. Grian left to go to the toilet. 

"So, uh, Stress." Iskall began, his nervous posture not making things any better. Mumbo had paused, looking up at them with curiosity. Grian was still out. "I... I didn't know you had magic?" 

His voice raised at the end, making it sound like a question. Quite frankly, Stress somehow found that relatable. Because, well...

"I didn't." Stress answered honestly. Her hands were suddenly covered by frost, and Stress lets out a horrified gasp at the sight. But the moment it appeared, the frost melted just as fast. They were shaking now, and Iskall quickly scooped her freezing hands into his own, warmer ones. Stress barely felt that warmth. "I... I swear I didn't. You have to believe me."

"Of course I believe you." Iskall looked baffled, probably because Stress accused him of such things. "Why would you lie about this?" 

The door opened, and Grian came back whistling a tune. He stopped when he saw Stress' panicked look, and almost looked sad. He closed the door using his foot and pulled out his communicator, likely sending someone a quick text.

"Hey, Stress? You told Iskall about your homeworld, yes?" Grian asked, pocketing his communicator. Stress gaped at him, widening her eyes in shock. Iskall swore to never tell anyone! In a fit, Stress punched Iskall on the shoulder. 

Iskall winced but laughed. However, the two end up freezing in terror (quite literally) when Stress saw a patch of crystal ice forming on the shoulder where Stress had punched. The ice broke, shattering back onto the floor, leaving a few puddles of water. Iskall grabbed his shoulder, just rubbing it before looking at her worriedly. 

Shamefully, Stress backed away until her back hit the wall, bringing the blankets closer to herself. The room suddenly felt a few degrees colder. 

"It's okay, Stress. I just... Actually, I'm not too sure why I told him either." Iskall scrunched up his face in confusion, which made Stress laugh dryly. It didn't make the freezing cold in her body go away, though, and she curled in herself, hoping she doesn't accidentally hurt anyone. 

Iris had appeared at the side of the bed. With a neutral look, she climbed up with relative ease, crawling until she was sitting right outside Stress' blanket cocoon. Stress just looked at her, wondering what she was doing.

(Funny, she didn't worry about possibly harming her)

The young girl began humming and reached out a finger towards her face. Stress remained unmoving, until she let out a small squeak when she felt the younger's finger poke her cheek. 

Stress calmed down and felt a bit more warmer. Still cold, got to figure out why, but warmer nonetheless. Iris remained by her side as the other boys sighed in relief. 

"It's not a big deal, my homeworld, I mean." Stress said, shrugging. It took her a while to realize that she wasn't wearing her usual outfit- it was a dark green hoodie that was sizes too large on her. Looking down, she found a patch on the left breast with the number '85'. It was one of Iskall's hoodie. It made her blush. "It's just not really pleasant to talk about." 

The Architect boys looked at each other in thought. Grian was the one who replied.

"Well, you don't have to tell us about your past. I have... a bit of a theory of why your magic came to be, but I need to know about how your homeworld functions. Iskall told me it's full of magic but I need more details than that."

Since when was Grian so serious about magic? Does he know magic? Stress hummed in thought, finding Grian's serious side quite unnerving.

"Well... It's like every other magical worlds?" Stress answered, but cringed when she realized how unsatisfying her reply was. "My homeworld focuses more on elemental magic. It's not a mod- it's been coded there ever since. It's also quite medieval, I suppose? There's a few kingdoms and villages around, full of different sorcerers and wizards who posses elemental magic. There are also unique mobs- different elements, obviously. The universal mobs are also different as well- each one having a different element."

Grian was nodding along. Iskall was simply listening, while Mumbo just looked confused. A glance to her left and she found Iris spacing out. 

"It's mainly inhabited by players other than NPCs. Not every player that spawns is able to posses magic, however." Stress made a sour look on her face. "... Especially in the villages. It's mostly those higher in power that usually have these powerful magic. Like, er, kings and queens, princesses..."

"So you were born without magic, then?" Grian asked. Stress nodded but didn't say anything.

Iskall looked worried. "Is there something bothering you?"

Stress clicked her tongue and looked away from the boys. "... It's stupid." 

That was when Mumbo finally spoke from his spot behind the other two. "You left your homeworld. There's a reason for it, isn't there? And that's why you didn't want to tell us?"

Almost ashamed, Stress nodded.

"Hey, why the long face? It's not that bad, isn't? You were just dissatisfied with your homeworld- that's why you left, right?" Grian questioned, looking concerned for his friend. When Stress didn't reply, Grian's nervous smile faltered, and he was soon frowning. "... Stress, what happened?" 

She looked up and saw their worried faces. She felt her hands growing cold once more, but she ignored it. Her past wasn't something she was proud of, and she knew sooner or later that her friends would start asking questions. She supposed she was grateful for Iskall's patience and the trait to not pry into ones' backstory. But now that this happened, she was bound to tell someone soon. Why not now? 

"In my homeworld, players who weren't spawned with magic were seen as a lower life. A disgrace to the family. That's why villages, especially poor ones, are filled with players who can't do magic. They don't even have the intelligence or the willpower to leave their homeworld. Royal families are different. They have a long lineage of magic users as well as possessing admin powers. There is more than one admin for each kingdom, and meet every month to check on their homeworld server." Stress paused, and shook her head softly. 

"It's practically impossible for royal families to spawn a non-magic player."

She stopped, and let her friends sink in the information. Soon, Iskall softly gasped and looked at her in surprise. 

"So, you're-?"

"A princess." Stress said, and laughed. There were tears pricking her eyes. "And I wasn't spawned with magic abilities. Imagine that, hm?"

Her mind was then flooded with memories of her youth. Years and years of trying to form any magic- fire, ice, water, anything, but failing miserably. She had many personal trainers paid by her family, but they all failed (or _she_ failed them).

She had brothers and sisters who either look at her in pity or look at her as if she wasn't royal. As if she doesn't deserve to live in a grand castle, a place of privilege, and high power. 

Her mother often smiled at her sadly. Her father barely looked at her. 

"Stress... c'mere." Stress tensed up when she felt Iskall lean over to give her a hug. Choking out a sob, she fell into his embrace and cried into his hoodie. 

For maybe around twenty minutes, she simply cried. Her body fell between cold and slightly warmer before growing cold again. She knew it was the magic acting up due to her emotions and-

Wait... she didn't have any magic before. 

Slowly, she unlatched herself from her friend, wiping her wet cheeks away as she looked at Grian quizzically. "I didn't have magic before. Do... Do you know what's happening to me?"

Grian and Mumbo looked at each other. Mumbo nodded as if he was encouraging him, and Grian began explaining.

"We were trying to figure out why you had magic in the first place. We know you don't have magic at spawn- supported by your story just now. So we were making theories as to how it began and everything." 

Stress stayed quiet, and Grian took it as a sign to continue. 

"You weren't spawned with magical abilities, but you were still spawned in your homeworld where magic is _highly_ concentrated. We had a theory pertaining to that but hearing what you said... There is another theory that seemed more plausible." Grian paused taking a quick bottle of water before continuing.

"You were spawned in a royal family, and according to what you said, it is impossible for royal families to spawn a child without any magic. I think your case is unique- think of it as a one in a million possibility, that when you were spawned, your codes got messed up, preventing you from using your magic. I don't think you were spawn without magic, but more so that your code got jumbled during spawn. So in a way, you have the magic but don't have the capability to do so.

So... she wasn't entirely a fraud in a royal family? It somehow made her feel better, but years of neglect from her family still prevented her from feeling fully relieved. 

"Now, the only problem is, we don't know what caused your codes to shift back into its proper place." Grian frowned, crossing his arms. "That's where we're stumped at."

Or maybe she really wasn't born with magic. Her coding or whatever didn't get mixed up... 

Grian's explanation was likely very informative, but Stress felt her head aching just from thinking about it, making it sound more complicated than it likely is in her mind. The ache caused some ice to form around the room, shaping it into sharp patterns that made Mumbo jump as a piece of ice as sharp as a knife form from the ground near him. 

"Stress? Hey." Iskall placed his hands on Stress, and she let out a small gasp. She looked around, seeing the ice that formed around the room. She also saw- much to her horror- snowflakes coming out of nowhere falling on the ground. 

One snowflake landed on Grian's nose, and he twitched his nose in response. "Hm... Are you comfortable with... all this?" 

She laughed dryly. "Am I? I don't know... One moment I didn't have magic and the next I'm making ice left and right and- and I'm cold. Miserably cold. I don't know." She sighed, defeated. Pathetically, she laid back down on the bed. 

"I love you guys, I really do, but can I be alone for a while? I just want to... rest." 

Iskall's face had fallen into one of guilt and sadness. Stress knew her request was harsh, but she really wanted to be alone to just think. A lot of things had happened and she's still recovering from overusing her magic. Much to her relief, she saw Iskall standing up from the chair, mumbling a soft 'Okay' that made her heart clench. 

Grian and Mumbo didn't look like they wanted to leave either. In fact, Grian looked as if he regretted piling all that information on her, but finding no words to convey an apology. He just sighed deeply, and reached out to pick up Iris from the bed. 

The young girl squirmed when Grian had his hands under her arms. She looked like she wanted to stay with Stress. 

Although she made protests, Grian still easily picked her up. Iris made whining noises, reaching out to Stress. For an unknown reason, she wanted Iris to stay, but she didn't know why. 

"We have to meet up with Joe and Cleo for Iris' class. Your communicator is by the table. Just message one of us, okay? We'll be around the area." Grian said, smiling at her. It looked strained. He then left in a haste, Iris lifting her head from over Grian's shoulder to flash Stress one last look of worry before disappearing. 

Iskall looked like he wanted to say something, but Mumbo's hand being placed on his shoulder prevented that. He sighed deeply.

"Get well soon, love," Mumbo said, flashing her a small smile before leaving the room. This left Iskall and Stress alone, and as the seconds tick by Stress couldn't help but feel bad. 

"You can stay." Stress said, causing Iskall to look up in shock. 

"I- I didn't mean to stay for long! I wanted to say something but words are not working and- and you don't have to I'll leave right now-"

"Iskall-!" Stressed, she sat up from her bed quickly. It was a bad idea, when she felt a spike of pain go through her body. Stress winced, her hand coming straight to where her heart is as a cold sensation wash over her nerves, causing her to shiver uncontrollably.

Immediately, she saw the walls being covered by a thin layer of ice, steadily growing in sharp, jagged points. 

The bed dipped from a sudden weight, and Stress felt Iskall's arms immediately wrap around her body. Iskall was mumbling apologies and holding her close- not too tight, which is different from his usual bear hugs that Stress likes so much. 

"I'm sorry Stress I'm- I'll stay. _God_ , I'll stay." Iskall repeated those words softly, his voice cracking every so often as he ran his hands through her hair. Stress felt herself calm down. 

"... You are forgiven." Stress said in a joking tone. 

Despite being in his arms, Stress doesn't feel... 

She doesn't feel warm.

* * *

"Grian! Good to see you, friend." Joe smiled as Grian came into view. The sweater-wearing hermit was surprised to find that Joe and Cleo were sticking around New Hermitville instead of the mainland. 

Iris looked upset when they left Area 77, finding comfort in pulling the hood over her head and hiding her face from reality. As much as it was cute, Grian couldn't help but wonder why she was reacting this way. Stress and Iris hadn't properly met each other until recently, and already Grian could tell Stress caught her curious eyes. 

He can bring her back to visit later on, once Stress feels better.

"Hello! Where are Bdubs and Keralis? I thought they would be happy to greet Iris?" Grian asked. Iris looked up from his shoulder and actually widened her eyes at the sight of Joe Hills. She began to squirm, causing Grian to put her down so she can run up to Joe to greet him. Now, it was funny that Iris immediately found Joe interesting. Joe thought Iris just grew more familiar with the hermits but in reality, ever since Iris found the color blue magnificent, she had been eyeing that color, almost similar to when she kept on staring at the color red. 

Joe's shirt is practically a walking beacon of that color. And christ, Iris just learned Joe's name today, which makes it hilarious. 

"They're making a little schoolhouse over there." Cleo was hunched over a temporary wooden plank table, looking at a few books and papers strewn about. She pointed over her shoulder, just a couple of blocks away from Hermitville, two builders were making a nice looking house. They were following the same block palette as of the rest of the village, so it looked like it was still part of it. 

"I thought Iris would be going to the mainlands?" Grian wondered out loud, snickering when he saw Iris running around Joe. Cleo shrugged, closing a book before placing it back onto the pile. 

Cleo shrugged. "Well, it tends to be a pain traveling between places. Not sure how Iris feels about going back and forth between long distances, so just to make things, easier Joe and I decided to stick around here for the time being."

Grian nodded in agreement. "Mhm, I see what you mean. I... think Iris wants to stick around here for a while, too." He didn't mention that it was because Iris wanted to stay near where Stress was. "So, what's the plan?" 

"As long as Iris doesn't know English, we can't really focus on other subjects like Math and Sciences. Unless of course, I decided to translate the entire syllabus into Galactic... We're gonna teach Iris English to fix the language barrier." Joe explained. Iris had finished playing around with Joe and ran up to Cleo to look at what she was doing. "Also, if we fix the language barrier, we could ask Iris about her past and learn more. See what she knows and stuff like that, ease Xisuma's workload." 

Right, Xisuma. He was asleep when Xisuma left the server with Doc. He already heard the explanation from Ren that they went off to an adventure in finding out what the hell is happening to their server. It confused Grian because he thought they would leave at a later date. He supposed Stress' magic surge scared Xisuma... He wouldn't blame him, honestly. 

"Bdubs and Keralis are still building, so I guess we can start while the sun is still high?" Cleo suggested, and both Joe and Grian nodded. 

For the next few hours, they spent their time outdoors, teaching Iris English. It was a rather tedious process, as Joe had to translate everything to Galactic for her to understand what was even happening. Cleo had some picture cards, which greatly helped Iris in her learning. Grian was mainly watching, seeing his friends do most of the teaching, but he found that he enjoyed watching Iris learn new things.

She would always look between the two of them in confusion. Eventually, she started pointing, as if asking what that means. Later on, Iris actually started asking questions via writing it down in Galactic. And while Joe never revealed how terrible her writing was, it was still readable to know what kind of question she was asking. 

It was like time was non-existent. Grian was just... there, looking at this kid he met just two days ago. Where unnatural things lead them to meet her in the cave. 

A memory of the first time they were alone together, in the rustic house. The drawing she made of him. 

He didn't understand the connection, but after thinking about it, he wondered why he didn't and berated himself for being an idiot. The added wings and the eyes? Why didn't he see that? 

Iris isn't just connected to whatever happened to Stress. It's not really a connection it's just something that Iris does- she sees magic. Or specks of magic that no non-magical player can feel except for those who are. Grian widened his eyes at the realization. 

Her behavior around the Concorp duo? Being interested in Tango when they met with Team ZIT in the shopping district? Not to mention the drawing from the very first day? And now Stress? 

"G? Are you alright?" 

Grian looked up, and saw Joe and Cleo looking at him worriedly. Iris was also looking at him, but was tilting her head. He couldn't read her face, but for some reason, Grian could tell Iris knew what was happening with him. 

"I have to do something. Look after Iris, alright? I'll get Ren to pick her up later." Grian said in a hurry, standing up from where he was seated for a few hours. He was equipping his elytra when Joe started talking. 

"Whoa- what's wrong, friend? Did something happen? You look tense all of a sudden." The poet frowned. "Is there anything I can do? I'm a temp. admin, after all-" 

"No! No, it's fine, not something you should worry about." Grian's heart was hammering against his chest. He looked nervously between the three of them as he took a step back. "I'll be in Area 77 if you need me, okay? Bye Iris."

Iris, having learned the word 'Bye' just a few minutes ago, perked up at the word and happily waved at him, mumbling gibberish that oddly sounded like a 'Bye!' as well. Grian smiled, still not regretting liking her so much, before taking off to the skies. 

As he glided back down to Area 77, he pulled out his communicator. 

  
**DM; <Goodtimeswithscar>, <Grian>**

  
**< Grian> Scar i need to talk to you**   
**< Goodtimeswithscar> ??? are you ok?**   
**< Grian> Yes but i realized something and i need to talk to you abt it before i lose my mind**   
**< Goodtimeswithscar> what about?**   
**< Grian> its Iris. i think she can see magic **   
**< Goodtimeswithscar> ...what?**   
**< Grian> prepare a list of all the magic users/those with magical backgrounds. i want to test smthing.  
<Goodtimeswithscar> do they know?  
<Grian> ?  
<Goodtimeswithscar> abt you  
<Grian> ... they will soon**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just saying but the ask box for joe and cleo are still open!! Click [HERE](https://ask-the-hermits-and-one-child.tumblr.com/) and ask them random stuff i suppose we re here to havee good vibes fun times


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i didnt realize that yall would react that strongly in the previous because i didnt intend it to be that way so i feel bad and lowkey kind of just rushed this chapter so oops

When Xisuma's vision came into view, he felt his feet connect back into solid ground. He placed a hand on his chest, then reached up to his helmet to make sure the settings and ventilation lines were still connected and running. He then blinked and surveyed his surroundings. 

Outside the different worlds made by different players, there was a universe. It wasn't void like what many people thought, nor was it like the aether. It was simply a universe that connected all the worlds into one, a harmonious bond that filled up said universe. Within the universe that housed trillions of different worlds, there was also a community hub. 

That's what they usually call it. It's neither a world nor a realm. It's just a plane of existence that connected the servers together. A common ground where anything was basically possible. 

The sky was full of white with swirls of rainbow-colored strings weaving in and out, making a wave structure in the sky. Within the sky, there were thousands of islands. Many of which had buildings in them- a cafe, a trading center, even a dance club. There were many, and they were all floating in the white-rainbow abyss of the community hub. 

The island Xisuma found himself in was the largest of them all, because it's the island that brings players into this hub. Even as he looked around, he could see players of different appearances materializing out of thin air as they leave their servers. The cobblestone path beneath him leads to a long pathway that revealed portals to different public servers. 

Around the cobblestone path, there were grasses and trees. Many were chilling about, either waiting for their friends or something else. He saw a girl poofing into the hub, and smiling widely as she recognized two of her friends who were already waving her over from a few blocks away. 

The hub was always full of activity and color. It nearly made his head hurt.

"Yo, X! You alright?" 

There was a hand on his shoulder. Xisuma looked up and was glad to see Doc's familiar face within the blur of colors around them. "Yea, I'm fine. Slightly overwhelming, y' know? Senses and all." 

Doc nodded. "Understand. We haven't been in the hub for a while... I think they renovated it? Looks much more lively than before."

There were a lot of players around, humans and hybrids alike. Xisuma spots a Netherborn like Tango from a distance. Unfortunately, he had yet to meet another Voidkind like him outside of the Hermitcraft server. It makes him wonder if there was even anyone like him.

"So, where are we going exactly? There's a lot of islands around..." Doc asked as the two started walking down the cobblestone path. At the edge of the island, there were launchpads, players happily jumping on it to launch themselves to the other islands. Of course, using elytras is common in commuting, but back then they only had launchpads and had to jump from one island to another. Now, it's just simply a fun thing to do.

"We're gonna rent some elytras," Xisuma said, walking to the launchpad far on the left side. There were less people there. "Some good ones, so we don't use the ones we have in the server." 

Doc was quiet for awhile. "Is it that far that we can't use the elytras we already have?" 

"Literally in the edge of nowhere, my friend. That's why it's dangerous."

He jumped on the launchpad and heard nothing but the wind blowing through his ears as he was launched across the bottomless pit and to another island. He landed without trouble on the grassy block and was pleased to find Doc landing beside him a second later. 

There was a faint scream progressively growing louder behind them. Xisuma and Doc somehow stepped to their respective side and out of the way of a player that came barreling towards where they were moments ago, sliding across the grass face-first. Xisuma winced, knowing it would hurt. 

"You alright, man?" Doc worriedly asked, offering a hand to the player. The player- wearing a blue hoodie and a white mask with red accents on it happily accepted the help. He was brought to his feet, and he jumped on his toes as he feels his body again. 

"Yep! Just haven't done that in awhile." The player said, giggling afterward which Xisuma found oddly creepy yet acceptable. Before Xisuma could say anything, there was a voice somewhere in the background, which attracted their attention to a group of players nearby. 

"Yo, Delirious! That was fucking amazing!" One of them with red skin and dark hair said, the right eye closed due to an 'X' scar over it. The blue hooded player pointed a middle finger towards him and made a raspberry noise despite wearing a mask. 

"Fuck you, man!" He yelled. Remembering he was still with Xisuma and Doc, the player looked back at them and gave them a sheepish wave. "Thanks again, guys." He smiled, before running towards his friends, jumping towards a man wearing a grey bunny hoodie and a shorter male that resembled a squirrel.

"No problem." Doc waved back. Xisuma watched the player get noogied by a purple elephant before he directed his attention back to Doc. 

"I just have to talk to someone here real quick about the elytras," Xisuma explained. There were a couple of shops on the island they were on, but the shop they landed in front of was what he was eyeing at. It was some kind of 'trading' store, not the same as a trading hall found in another island. It's more lenient, and people can just come and go by switching out the item they want with the item they don't want. It's a simple system that could have been easily exploited, but surprisingly enough everyone was pretty respectful.

They entered the store. Not many people around but there are aisles full of items that Xisuma was sure Doc had never seen before. Turning around, Xisuma laughed when Doc was inspecting what looked like a long javelin made of gold. He jumped when it transformed into a shotgun, and looked at Xisuma with confused eyes.

"People literally trade these stuff away? What the hell am I missing?"

"Don't worry. You won't get out of the store unless the item you want is worth just as much as the item you're giving away." Xisuma took the strange weapon from his hand to put it back where it was founded. "Come on, let's go to the front desk." 

There was a young man at the front desk, with brown hair tied into a high pony-tail and golden yellow eyes. He was around his early twenties or even younger. Xisuma had seen him a few times before, but he find it peculiar that he was alone. Last time he was here... Wow, it must have been years ago. 

"Mason, it's good to see you, my friend." Xisuma greeted. The man jumped, startled to hear Xisuma saying his name. He squinted his eyes at him, as if trying to recall where he had seen him before, until his eyes went wide and his face broke a smile. 

"Holy- Xisuma! I haven't seen you in forever, man! Where've you been? I- Sorry it's just- Dad isn't here at the moment and-"

"Calm down, kid." Doc interrupted, which thankfully made Mason pause. 

"Oh, who's your friend?" 

"His name is Doc. This is Mason, the son of a very old friend of mine." 

This made Mason scoff. "Come on, my dad isn't that old." 

"Well, he is a legend amongst us." Xisuma pointed at the younger male's eyes. "Especially since you inhabited those eyes of your father's. I remember when you were just a young lad, deciding to take up your mother's shop instead of being an adventurer like your dad. Speaking of which, where are they?" 

Mason shrugged, sighing. "Oh, you know... The usual. Dad is somewhere visiting old friends for nostalgia's sake and mom went to visit her homeworld for personal reasons. They'll be back later but- do you need to find my dad? I can leave him a message if you want?" 

Xisuma smiled but shook his head no. Mason has always been such a nice kid. He could still remember the first time he met him- he was just around ten. How time has passed by so fast.

"There's no need. I just wanted to ask your father a... favor." In his inventory, Xisuma pulled out the pendant and placed it on the desk. Doc looked at it curiously, but stayed quiet to see what would happen.

The pendant was a circular disc, with the letters TC engraved on it. Behind, there was a name scratched on the surface. As Mason picked it up to look at the name at the back, his cheerful expression turned into one of sadness. He looked up at Xisuma, still holding the pendant. 

"Is it... How bad is it?" 

Xisuma chuckled a bit. "It's not as bad as you think it is. It's just... concerning, is all, and it's best if I fix it before it becomes complicated. Believe me, I wouldn't go to you if there was anything else I could do." He sadly said. Mason nodded solemnly, still looking at the pendant before giving it back. 

"I'll prepare the elytras. Excuse me." The young man disappeared into the backroom. 

Doc coughed behind him. "Okay, uh, what the fuck just happened? How'd the hell do you know him?"

Xisuma sighed, knowing he should've told Doc beforehand, but quite frankly he didn't know how he could tell Doc. It was something he didn't think it was important to tell anybody. 

"I met his father years ago. We did a side job together and ever since then we just kept in touch." Xisuma looked at the pendant and frowned. "He had a group- a team, so to speak. They were really good friends, but after an incident, they broke off. He love them like family, and despite what happened he misses them dearly. Most disappeared off the face of the earth." 

Doc looked at the pendant. "And that?" 

"... There was one person from his team he knew was still alive, but never had the heart to reach out to. He wanted to give this pendant to his friend, to let him know that he misses him. However, he's found in the edge of the hub- if anything, the most dangerous places to be in. It just so happens that that same friend is the person we need to find give us the passage to where we needed to go." 

He turned it over, and on the surface, there were words scratched on it. It looked like a flint was used to write. It said 'Ty'. 

"As of now, I haven't given it to him. I tried... Ugh, it's complicated." Xisuma grumbled some choice of words under his breathe, causing Doc to give him a questioning look. 

"How so?" He asked. 

"... They had a fling, so it's awkward for the friend to accept it. Also, his self-esteem is practically non-existant." 

The sigh that left Doc's lips nearly made Xisuma laugh but he kept his composure. 

"So you're saying the guy we're looking for- he's found where we can get killed and never respawn- fucked the kid's dad and has no self-esteem?"

"The other way around, actually." 

Doc stared. 

"Y'know? He's the one getting fu-"

"I got the elytras! Phew, that took a while." Mason came back with two elytras in both hands. He placed them down on the counter rather roughly. "I... really have to clean the back room. Sorry to keep you waiting. Oh! And also a little something for your journey-"

"Ah, there's no need for such gestures. The elytras are alright." Xisuma tried to deny, but Mason looked determined anyway and went under the counter to collect it. Both hermits heard some items clattering on the ground, and they couldn't help but look at each other in worry and slight amusement. 

With a small 'ah-ha!', Mason came back to the surface and dropped down a small-sized shulker box on the counter. Xisuma lifted the lid, and looked at Mason with an eyebrow raised as he saw the contents. Doc, who was beside him, reached into the box to pull out what looked like mini chorus fruits but in a deeper shade of purple. It smelled terribly sweet. 

"Look, I know you've been to the edge about a handle of times now, Xisuma. You never come here unless you have to go there." Mason said, leaning on his elbows that were resting on the counter. "And believe me, I know how capable you are in handling yourself, but something weird is happening." 

He leaned forward, almost in a whisper. "There's something in the universe roaming around freely. No one can really feel it- but I do. My dad felt it, too. I don't think the edge of the hub would be the one you remember so..." He gestured to the shulker box. "There should be enough in there. If you reach the edge, and if you absolutely have to, take one and bite it. Make sure you bite it, and chew for a bit before swallowing. It should mask your presence around... you know what."

Xisuma was speechless because he didn't know Mason knew of the beings that roamed the edge. His father must have educated him, then. 

"X? You understand what this kid is saying?" 

"Hey! I'm not a kid-"

"Yea, I do. Many reasons why I prefer to do these trips alone, to prevent any future complications." Xisuma sighed, but stored the shulker box and the pendant back into his inventory. He grabbed the elytras and gave one to Doc. As he strapped it on, he could feel the magic faintly radiating from its wings, causing him to smile. 

"You're picking up magic like your father? I recognize the spell, but it's not done 

Mason visibly perked up and grinned widely. "Yea! I improved a lot- I can practically do half of the spells my dad can do! I even took over enchanting the elytras by myself." 

Doc whistled, impressed as he adjusted the strap on the elytra and tested the wings. "What's the effects on these babies?" 

"No durability and lightweight. Still your regular old elytras, but better! Unless of course, you lose them. Oh, and also fire resistance and loyalty. No one ain't taking those away from you unless they have a death wish." He looked smug, but softened it into a small smile. "Should be strong enough to get you to the edge fast- Holy shit, rockets! Almost forgot..." 

He ducked down but didn't take as much time as he got two shulker boxes on the counter. They were smaller compared to a normal shulker box back in their server, but bigger than the one Mason gave earlier. "Hand-made rockets, made by my lovely mom. Should give you the boost and power you need." 

Xisuma opened the box, and widened his eyes at the number of rockets inside. And it's just the first box!

"Mason, there's got to be something we have to pay. This is- honestly, this is not how I expected things to go." Xisuma was dumbfounded as hell. 

Doc only snorted at his reaction. "Always a derp, aren't you, X?" 

Mason laughed. "You can pay by visiting more often. You may even bring your friends along."

"I'll think about it."

Xisuma chatted with Mason for a while, only for old times' sake even though he was anxious to get going. Doc, sick of staying quiet for so long, had also joined in their conversation. Xisuma was pleased to know that Doc and Mason seemed to be getting along really well.

Five minutes later, Xisuma and Doc left the store with their new equipment. 

"Anything else?" Doc asked, pulling out a stack of rockets for use. 

Xisuma shrugged. "I think we have everything... but if you want, we can also visit a few other shops to get more supplies, just in case."

Doc gave him a look. "I'm assuming you know those shopkeepers as well?"

"Oh please, I'm not _that_ popular." 

That earned Xisuma a punch on the shoulder. It didn't inflict any damage, obviously, but it still made Xisuma laugh as they walked over to the edge of the island. Xisuma peered down the endless pit, watching the swirls of color get lost between the white. 

"Has it always been like this?" Doc asked, looking down as well.

"Like what?"

"Dunno... sickly bright? It makes my head hurt."

Xisuma mumbled an agreement. "It changes every once in a while, but the change happens so slowly, you can barely recognize it. I think Wels mentioned that the sky was dark navy blue with green lights coursing through it like waves at one point."

Doc opened his elytras, flexing the wings to test it out. "Right, Wels... I forgot he left the server yesterday. I hope his family is alright, he seems to be leaving way more often than usual." 

"I just hope his wife isn't angry with us for taking his husband away for so long." 

Xisuma opened his wings before closing them. "Shall we?"

Doc grinned, and with a sudden start, he leaped off the edge with a whoop of joy. Xisuma, who was unprepared, looked over the edge with worry only to jump back as Doc flew back up with a yell, the rockets provided by Mason doing wonders as Doc was several feet off the ground. 

"Show off!" Xisuma yelled. Doc only laughed in response, which prompted Xisuma to roll his eyes before jumping off the island himself, letting gravity pull him down at an alarmingly fast rate. He opened his wings a moment later, letting the air catch him before using the rockets to push himself up and to the air. 

He met Doc and almost in sync, the two made a 360 turn in the air until they began to just fly, letting the wings glide them over the floating islands.

"Dude, I feel like I'm flying! Like- I can't even feel the wings!" Doc was in cloud nine as he does tricks and turns around Xisuma, who rolled his eyes fondly at his friend. "You think I can buy one off of Mason and bring it to the server?" 

"The elytras only work in the hub, unfortunately," Xisuma explained, watching Doc flip around him. "Changing the rules within a server is a tedious process. Luckily, the hub is usually lenient and allows most magic abilities and/skills, so if the elytras Mason gave us were allowed in every server, everyone will be pretty OP." 

He paused and sighed. "Of course, you know this. You're just as old as me."

"You're not even that old!"

Soon after that, they fell into a comfortable silence as they fly through the hub, flying over islands full of stores and buildings and parks that were made by the community's hands. Xisuma couldn't help but smile when he saw a group of players constructing a store together, with one of them focusing on terraforming while the others jokingly banter with one another about the block palette they used. 

It reminded him of the Hermitcraft server, making Xisuma smile at the thought of his friends. He hoped he hadn't worried them too much, and he hoped that Joe can handle the server on his own. He has trained him in admin duties somewhere in Season 3 and 4 in case of any emergencies and knows full well that Joe is capable. But worries still comes and goes. 

Now, comes the part Xisuma dreaded. 

They have been flying for about ten to fifteen minutes now, and it still seemed as if there are endless islands floating around them. Eventually, the islands lessened as seconds turn to minutes, and soon Xisuma could only see less than a handful of the islands. The islands themselves were also worn-down and nearly abandoned with barely any players around.

Xisuma swooped down and landed on an island- the last island before they go to the very edge of the community hub. The island didn't have any buildings on them, only having a patch of grass that felt too dry and brown to be considered healthy. The sky, used to be white with swirls of color that made Xisuma's head hurt, was now darker and greyer. Of course, he knew the sky was still white for other players. Which means... 

"So, we're at the edge?" Doc asked, crossing his arms as he stared at the abyss. "Geez, I see why there's barely anybody here. It's like a ghost town."

Xisuma let out a breathy laugh at the imagery. "Oh, we're not at the edge. This is what most players would consider the space before entering the edge." 

Doc hummed. "'Enter', you say?" 

Xisuma pointed at the empty space in front of them. "Notice why the sky is dark compared to when we were at the center of the hub? Some players don't know this- they didn't have to, but there's actually a barrier protecting this place from what we call 'the edge'. It's easy for us to go through, but difficult for... those things to come in here." 

Xisuma was expecting Doc to ask about the beings that roamed the edge, but all he did was shrug and flex his wings open, taking out a couple of rockets from his inventory. He gave him a look and tipped his head towards the emptiness, almost as if asking him if they can go. 

He blinked, likely processing the silent question but he nodded anyway and opened his wings. 

If Doc is not gonna ask, Xisuma doesn't need to explain. Besides, Doc would understand the minute he arrived in the edge. 

Despite only seeing the emptiness, Xisuma could feel the force of the barrier keeping them safe. He suppressed the feeling of bile coming up his throat as the magic radiating from the barrier ends up overtaking his senses for a moment or two. He kept his focus, because he knew they will be reaching the barrier. 

However, he realized the barrier was actually pushing them back as if telling Xisuma not to leave. It confused Xisuma, because the last time he went through the barrier there was no resistance. He thought back to what Mason had told him earlier... 

If there was really something on the edge, then the barrier was making sure none of it gets here. 

Contrary to that, Xisuma has to get _to_ the edge, and the barrier is not cooperating with him. 

"Doc! SPAM!" Xisuma yelled and started spamming his rockets which ultimately gave him the boost to fight through the invisible force pushing him back. Faintly, from behind, he could hear Doc doing the same. 

The magic was resisting, but Xisuma pushed harder and before he could even realize it-

They had pushed themselves through the barrier, and what greeted Xisuma was practically a copy of what the hub had offered. 

Islands. Lots of them. Full of dark and broken down buildings, with the void pitch black as if it was made of tar. 

In those islands, Xisuma could vaguely see a humanoid shape figure made of static. 

It sent chills down his spine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you recognize some of the references i made in this chapter because honestly i have a lot of freedom with the world building and stuff. also like,, characters you may or may not recognize plz acknowledge them 
> 
> anyway im sure u noticed but how the world is structured in this fic is pretty different to other fics, because i literally base it off how 'minecraft' works. i really want to just dump the entire explanation of how the universe works into one chapter but that would just be word vomit and idk if yall would be interested in that
> 
> still its something im really heckin interested to expand upon, especially with what xisuma's part of the journey will focus in this fanfic.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> had to rewrite the chapter because i found it unsATisfyIng

When Joe and Cleo first offered to teach Iris, they had expected things to be much harder due to the language barrier. Not to mention they were unsure of what Iris does and doesn't know at the time, so the two were prepared for the challenge that would come. 

Except it didn't actually come. 

Instead, what came was utter disbelief and maybe a bit of caution, because they only spent three days teaching Iris to find out that she is actually way smarter than she let on. 

Within hours she could already understand basic English. And while she still can't write proper English, the progress was still outstanding. At some point Cleo had gone on to teach Iris some basic math, to then realize that Iris was speeding through the questions Cleo had given her. Joe then had to stop Cleo before she could test Iris about graph questions because she was that amazed that Iris was as smart as a freshman student in highschool. And she's eight! 

Baffled, the two decided to give Iris a day off from schooling. It was a Friday, so if anything it was a long weekend for the kid. 

... If she even knew what that usually entails. 

"Seriously! Where is Grian?!" Cleo loudly groaned, dramatically leaning onto Joe's body who was casually reading a book. "He's practically her father and he's not even around!" 

They were all hanging around New Hermitville, enjoying the cloudy day. Bdubs was seated on the ground nearby, Iris on his lap as he braided her hair. He quietly listened to the conversation Joe and Cleo were having, eyebrows scrunched up in worry as he too silently worried what had happened to Grian. 

Iris didn't seem to take notice, instead she was playing around with Bdubs' red sash between her fingers and humming a song to herself. Bdubs noticed that Iris wasn't as energetic as before. He could have thought of it as her being tired but they just had lunch an hour prior, and the afternoon was still pretty early. Iris didn't seem tired, either, just either bored or just out of it. 

No doubt it has something to do with Grian, Doc, and Ren.

Not like they did anything wrong per se... Doc left with Xisuma to find some answers, so he's in the clear. However, after Grian's behavior a few days ago he rarely ever visited, only for minutes at a time before rushing back to meet with Scar. Even Ren seemed distant and they don't even know what he's doing.

It's quite obvious that their lack of interaction is taking a toll on Iris. She enjoyed hanging out with Joe, Cleo, Bdubs, and even Keralis, but she missed her parental figures a lot. It made Bdubs feel sad for the kid and upset at the three- well, two men. Who in their right mind would just leave their child on the hands of other people? What the hell are they even doing?

"Grian was worried about something most likely related to Iris." Joe calmly replied to Cleo, flipping a page on his book. Cleo only huffed in reply, her arms wrapped around his neck as she peered over his head. "May I help you?" 

"What are you even reading? It's Galactic..." Cleo frowned, narrowing her eyes at the strange language. "How do you even read this?"

"It's not that hard, Cleo. By that I meant, English and Galactic are quite similar based on the alphabet. The only problem is that the shapes of the Galactic language can be too tedious and difficult to understand at first, which is mainly the reason why people don't want to learn it." Joe then used one hand to push Cleo's face upwards, making the zombie-lady huff in annoyance. "An eight-year-old can understand Galactic. I'm sure you can, too." 

"We can learn together!" Bdubs helpfully suggested. "We can also try speaking it and stuff!" 

Joe chuckled. "Galactic isn't a verbal language, unfortunately. There's no actual way of speaking Galactic- though some people theorized that the language the enderman were speaking is a form of Galactic." 

Bdubs groaned, causing Iris to look up at him in confusion. "Galactic is so tedious!" 

Iris wiggled from her spot and leaned forward to get her book. She flipped to a new page and wrote a word in very shaky but visible handwriting, then shoved it on Bdubs' face.   
No. 

"Hey! You have eight years of experience, I had none!" 

"... That's not how age works-" 

Bdubs stuck his tongue out anyway because he _knows_ that it's impossible for a newborn baby to learn a language. It's merely just an exaggeration! 

"Ugh, seriously, what happened to them? I mean, I know Doc is off to who knows where and Grian is acting weird, but Ren too?! I thought he was the most decent!" 

Iris looked uncomfortable overhearing her teacher talking poorly about her parental figures. As much as Bdubs was upset with them about their lack of responsibility, he admits that Iris' expression was much sadder to look at. 

"Well, instead of complaining about it, why don't we look for them?" Joe suggested. 

Bdubs nodded vigorously and looked down at Iris to see what she thought, but saw the blank expression on her face. "Hey, Iris? You alright?" 

Iris tugged on the sleeves of her shirt absentmindedly. She looked lost in thought, almost unsure of what to say or think. Bdubs shared a worried look with Joe and Cleo, clueless about what was happening or what they should even do. 

It seemed as if the mention of finding Ren and Grian had rendered Iris quiet. 

"Do you... want to look for Ren and Grian?" Bdubs softly asked. 

Iris only replied with a look of conflict. 

This made Cleo mumble some choice of words under her breathe, though Bdubs guessed that it would be because she was plotting some way to kill Ren and Grian. 

That was when Keralis came towards them, a shulker box tucked under his arm and whistling to himself.

"Hey, guys, what's with all the gloomy faces?" He asked nonchalantly, looking at everyone with an eyebrow raised. Bdubs, quite literally, picked Iris up by the armpits and pointed her towards Keralis. Iris, who was chill with the sudden pickup, half-waved at Keralis. 

"We're gonna track down her dads and give them a piece of our minds! Can you look after Iris for us? I know you're busy with your building and if you can't, you can ask another hermit to look after her for a while?" 

Keralis stored the shulker box into his inventory and collected Iris from Bdubs' hold, now carrying her normally. He gave them a worried look. "Oh, is Brian not visiting that much?" 

"Apparently so! We're gonna raid Area 77 to find that son of a-" Bdubs screeched when a thick book collided on the back of his head, causing a full heart of damage. He looked over his soldier and found Joe and Cleo giving him a dirty look.

"-aaa wonderful mother! Yea, yea, what I meant. Can you do that? Pleash?" Bdubs knew he didn't have to do his puppy face, but he did it anyway. Keralis only blankly stared at him before poking his nose with his free hand. 

"Of course, Bubbles. I'm busy gathering resources but I think Tango is free." 

"Perfect! That man knows how to have fun. Okay, lego!" 

Joe sputtered out some protests but it fell on deaf ears as Bdubs grabbed both of Joe and Cleo's arm, dragging them towards where Area 77 is. 

"We'll be back, promise!" Cleo called over her shoulder. 

Iris gave them a goodbye wave, and Bdubs briefly heard Keralis asking her if she liked to blow bubbles.

* * *

"Thank you so much." Keralis sighed. He looked stressed, which was not what Tango was used to seeing. On one hand he was holding onto Iris' smaller one, who was picking her nose, and the other he had a shovel. 

"There were just- it was weird! I wanted to do some grinding but there were just so many creepers and skeletons coming from the woods- I don't want to leave Iris alone and-"

"Keralis! Calm down, man, it's totally alright." Tango grinned, patting him on the shoulder reassuringly. "Why don't you take a break before getting back into the grind? I can get Iris off your hands." 

Keralis let out a sigh of relief, and Tango worried that he might pass out when he was dangerously leaning towards one side before straightening again. "Geez, dude, you look like you need a nap."

Iris looked worried and made a gesture that looked as if she was asking if he was okay. Keralis saw this and smiled, gently petting her head. 

"I'm alright, sweets. I got tired from beating all those creepers- you saw, right?"

Iris nodded, but still looked worried. She made no protest as she walked over to Tango to hold his hand, though. 

"Go rest, man." 

Keralis nodded and bid them goodbye before going to one of the houses in Hermitville. Tango hummed as he pondered over what they should do next. 

"Oh! I've been meaning to ask, but is Joe and Cleo teaching you English?" 

Iris looked excited and nodded happily. Tango couldn't help but smile, and just because he can, picked her up and placed her over his shoulders. She squealed and tried to find her balance, though instead she ended up holding onto Tango's offered hands to stay upright. She was giggling the whole time, and for some odd reason Tango had a feeling that she hadn't done a lot of that, today. 

"Welp, whaddya wanna do, Iris? The world is your oyster, you can do anything you want for today. Maybe visit Impulse? He's pretty busy at the hippie commune though, don't know what he's really up to. Everyone seems pretty busy these days, don't you think?"

As he talked, Tango was actually walking towards the direction of Hermitland. Some of the games there were still in construction, but there are others that were complete and cool to look at. He doubted he would let Iris try the dangerous games, but perhaps it would help distract Iris from whatever thoughts she may have. 

Besides, Tango isn't the only one who noticed the lack of Grian and Ren around their kid. 

Keralis didn't say much when he asked Tango to come to Hermitville, but he guessed that Cleo is currently yelling at Grian about his lack of responsibility as a parent.

Which reminded him, he should visit Stress and check on her health, as well as Grian. 

"Tango! Hey, Tango!" 

Surprised but very much pleased, Tango grinned widely at the sight of Zedaph's body enlarging every second. He swooped down from the sky and landed, albeit roughly, in front of them. He shook his elytra wings before tucking them in and smiled. "I happen to be finding you when I've been told that you were gonna babysit Iris for the rest of the day. Mind if I join you?" 

"No, not at all. The more the merrier, I think Iris likes the company, don't ya, kid?"

Iris nodded, which surprised Zedaph. 

"Whoa, she can understand English?"

"Yea! Isn't that amazing? Joe and Cleo are wonderful teachers, and Iris is so clever! Grian and Ren would be proud... If they could even get their butts off their work for like, a day." 

The two hermits and child had entered Hermitland, with Iris looking amazed at the large buildings and soon-to-be games. Like what Tango suspected, she didn't seem to keen on trying the games but rather enjoy looking at all the colors. 

"Oh, I noticed Grian went off the grid for a while. I was with Mumbo working on some redstone, and he expressed concern about him. Whatever he's up to, it's pretty worrying." Zedaph said. "... But Ren? I'm quite surprised he's also being distant." 

"I don't even know what he's up to. Doc would know since they're best friends and partners but he's occupied. Iskall is too busy looking after Stress so I don't think he would know either." 

Zedaph was frowning and he looked thoughtful. Tango placed Iris down from his shoulders and watched as she ran towards a patch of flowers. She kneeled by them, and he saw her delicately tracing her finger on the petal. 

"Impulse is doing the same, I think," Zedaph said. Tango saw the sad look in his eyes, and his instincts immediately told him to put an arm around him in a side-hug. He followed his instincts, and felt Zedaph lean his head on his shoulder. Tango rubbed his arm comfortingly. 

"He's busy doing his hippie commune stuff, it's normal for him to be busy." 

Zedaph didn't look convinced. "Well, yea, but so are we. He's already busy with the hippie commune before, but ever since Iris came he just... I dunno, except for that one time we first met her and when we were in Area 77 he just disappeared without a word. It's like he doesn't have time for anything else but the hippie commune, which is weird but that's the only thing I can think of he can be so busy for." 

Tango could understand why Zedaph was upset by this. The three of them usually hung out in most days, and it was obvious they cherished being together in one place. But with the hippie commune, they rarely see Impulse. It wasn't the first time, but Tango would admit he felt sad and maybe jealous that Impulse was focused on something else. 

He just loves his friends, okay? Zedaph and Impulse have a special place in his heart. 

"Well, why don't we give him a quick visit?" Tango suggested. "He may be busy but that doesn't stop us from visiting him, right?" 

Zedaph visibly perked up at the suggestion, and already a smile was forming on his lips. "That's a wonderful idea! I don't think Iris has seen the hippie commune, so maybe it's a perfect opportunity to see what two-thirds of her fathers are working on!" 

Tango found it funny that everyone was on board in calling Ren, Grian and Doc her dads. They never really discussed them being referred to as a father but seemed to accept the nickname. Maybe except for Grian. 

"Hey, Iris! We're gonna visit Impulse, we may see Ren, too." 

Iris came over to them after hearing them call for her. Tango saw the distracted look on her face once he mentioned Ren. Giving a look towards Zedaph's way, he was only replied with a shrug. It seemed as if Ren's lack of interactivity is affecting Iris. 

"Hmm... Perhaps we should fly over there to give the hippies a quick visit." 

"I agree with you, man." 

Iris seemed pretty excited at the concept of flying. Tango knew Iskall had held Iris when flying, but he wasn't sure if it was entirely safe. Still, flying was faster, and Iris looked too excited to make any changes now. So they prepared their elytras, and while holding Iris close, they took off into the skies. 

They reached the hippie commune in record time, much to Tango's surprise. As they dropped down onto the vans surrounding the campfire, Tango couldn't help but be amazed by the amount of greenery and details around the place. 

They really are going full hippie, huh. 

Hilariously, Iris was more interested in looking through the various shulker boxes and chests littering the entire place. They're very likely Grian's chest monster.

"Oh, hey guys! I- I didn't know you were visiting!" Tango heard Impulse, but couldn't see him. He jumped when he felt a body over his back, and he laughed as Impulse tried to ride on him. He easily pushed him off, causing his friend to fall on the grass in a heap of laughter. 

"Impulse! My man, where've you been? We miss you!" Tango helped Impulse up to his feet and pulled him into a hug, before allowing Zedaph to launch himself onto Impulse. He was wearing his hippie outfit, with the flower crown and the brown vest. 

"Been doing some work on the commune but- wow, it's so good to see you guys here- Oh, hey kiddo." Tango lifted his arm to look at Iris, who was hiding behind him. She shyly smiled and waved at the hippie before hiding. "Are you guys looking for Ren?" 

"Not the original plan, but it would be nice to know," Zedaph replied. "Tango's on babysitting duty and Iris is bummed that she hadn't seen Ren or Grian in a while. I'm also bummed that we haven't talked in two days but I'm satisfied now." 

Impulse laughed, but then looked worried as he eyed Iris. No, there was more than worry, Tango also saw guilt in his eyes. 

"Well, I suppose it would be alright. Ren's working on some farms over this way, if you would just follow me..." 

Impulse led them to an area closed off by large wooden fences made of oak bark. In it was a farm that was mainly designed for aesthetics than for efficiency. On the farm itself was Ren, shoveling up the dirt to put in the water. His hippie outfit was caked in dirt and mud and his flower crown was nowhere to be seen. He also looked tired but determined and was unaware of the presence of three hermits and the child. 

"We got visitors!" Impulse called, catching Ren off guard who dropped his shovel by accident. He looked over, and smiled widely when he saw Iris. 

"Oh, baby girl! How've you been?" Iris looked much happier than ever as she practically flung herself over to the hippie, dirtying her clothes along the way. Ren laughed and hugged her back. "I missed you! Sorry I haven't hung out with you."

"Yea, uh, curious question. Why haven't you hung out with Iris?" Tango asked, his arms crossed. Ren then stood up properly, pulling Iris up to her feet. "Apparently both you and Grian haven't been spending time with her that much. She was pretty sad, y'know?" 

From there, Ren widened his eyes and a look of shame formed on his face. "R-Really? I didn't mean to be away for so long I- I was trying to do as much work as I can on the hippie commune. The hippies and I didn't do much work when Iris came, so when I saw the chance I decided to complete as much work so that I have time to hang out with Iris on the weekend." 

Tango and Zedaph looked at each other in surprise. Is that why Ren went dark for a few days? He's just been holed up in the hippie commune, doing work just so he can have time with Iris on the weekend? 

"That's why I've been helping him." Impulse added, clapping a hand on Ren's back. "Finishing up as much as we can so we both have time to hang out with the people we love during the weekend."

"Aww, you do love us!" Zedaph cooed, but his cheeks were dusted pink. Tango rolled his eyes but even he could feel himself turning slightly warmer knowing Impulse meant platonic love. It's still pretty wholesome. 

"We really should have told someone about it." Ren laughed, pulling Iris close to his side. "Everyone must have been worried."

"Yea! I think Cleo is probably ratting Grian out for not properly taking care of Iris." Tango laughed, but then a look of worry flashed on his face. "Oh god, Cleo is gonna kill Grian."

Iris' eyes went wide with fear. 'Kill?' her expression asked. 

Even Ren looked worried. "Ohhhhh man. We gotta go!"

* * *

"YOU WENT OFF FOR NEARLY THREE DAYS AND BARELY INTERACTED WITH IRIS FOR EVEN AN HOUR WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU- YOU PIECE OF-!" 

Joe and Bdubs were currently pulling back a fuming Cleo away from Grian, who was being attended by Scar for a bruising punch on his face. Grian's face was hot with shame, but his mind was barely registering the threats being hurled on his way. He was so tired, when was the last time he even slept? 

It was surprising to see Joe, Bdubs, and Cleo walk through the room suddenly. It was more surprising when the moment Cleo laid her eyes on him, she immediately walked over and punched him, hard.

"Grian? You good, man?" Scar asked, his fingers barely touching his cheek, but the presence was still there. Grian winced when he felt the magic grazing through his skin. It didn't hurt, it just stung, like a needle or something. 

"Cleo, calm down! Please!" Bdubs pleaded. Joe even looked upset, but if it was because of Grian's actions or Cleo's reaction, no one was sure. 

Cleo was still raging but she had stopped moving. Joe kept a hand on her arm, just to be safe. 

Grian avoided the piercing glare he received from the hermit. 

"Iris was upset, you know," Cleo said through gritted teeth. "I mean, I know being a parent is sudden but, c'mon, just dumping Iris onto us for whatever reason? That's low, even for you." 

Grian winced because he knew she was right. 

Scar stood up and stepped forward, shielding Grian away from the others. It was a funny turn of events, considering they were technically supposed to be enemies at the current arc of the story. It made Grian relax knowing he at least has a friend looking out for him. 

"You must forgive Grian." Scar began to explain. "There was something he realized about Iris and went to talk to me about it. However, it, unfortunately, caused more questions than answers, and Grian was hoping to conduct an experiment to help us understand Iris-"

"Yea, well, rule number one of parenting is literally to not leave your eight-year-old child for hours on end?! Especially if that child is Iris who is looking at not just you, but Ren and Doc for fucking guidance?! I mean, I know she's not alone but Iris was sad and upset that you don't stay for long!" Cleo was pacing back and forth for some reason, but it clearly showed that she wasn't gonna attack him anymore. Scar relaxed and helped Grian to his feet. 

Grian didn't say anything as Cleo continued to list all the things he should've done. In all honesty, Grian couldn't help but be irritant of the nagging. Not because of Cleo, but more so because he didn't get a lot of sleep, so his brain isn't processing what she's saying half the time. 

Besides, he already knew he made a mistake. He lo- He loved Iris, and he knew ever since he laid eyes on her that Iris would be depending on him for love and care. Not to mention, the three of them had quickly decided to care for the young one without much protest. However, it doesn't mean that Grian was equipped to be a parent.

Yes, he has skills due to having a bunch of siblings but he wasn't prepared. Not being by her side the past few days was a mistake on his part, and he was ashamed, guilty, and overall upset over his behavior.

Iris is just a kid, and Grian is just... Grian. 

Fuck, he's just making excuses at this rate. 

"Cleo." Grian finally said, his voice rough and scratchy. "I'm sorry. I- It's not enough, but I'm sorry." 

Cleo stopped, her gaze on him still hard and cold until Joe placed a hand on her shoulder. One shared look between them and Cleo sighed. All signs of anger were gone in an instant, leaving only a sense of somber. 

"I know you are. You aren't like the others, but seeing you neglecting Iris made me feel... angry. Just don't fucking do that again unless someone's assigned as a babysitter or something? I know we're her teachers but-"

Grian put a hand up, causing her to pause. "I get it. It's not fair for me to depend on you guys to take care of her when it's already my responsibility from the very start."

Cleo looked pretty satisfied with his reasoning and gave him a small smile. "Hm, you really aren't like the others." 

None of them questioned what she meant by 'others', they didn't have the time. On the wall to Grian's right, it suddenly exploded. The vibration it caused nearly toppled them over and Grian watched with wide eyes as the smoke dissipates, revealing Tango and Impulse through the whole, the latter holding up a shovel as a weapon and the former with his hands forward, blazes of fire surrounding them. 

Ren and Iris ran out from between them, the dog hybrid waving his hands around madly. 

"Nobody fight! Please- Grian and I are terrible but that doesn't mean we can make it up for something but please don't fi-" Ren cut mid-sentence when he registered the confused and shocked faces of the other people in the room. 

"... Too spontaneous of an entrance?" 

Bdubs slowly opened his mouth but no words came out. Joe looked shocked but managed to speak for everyone in the room. "The door was right here..."

"And my wall!" Scar wailed. 

Tango looked sheepish, the fire extinguishing on his hands. "Uh, Ren had us believed that something really bad happened so we weren't really thinking logically?"

"Oh! I was the one saying that we could just use the door but no! Of course you wouldn't listen!" Zedaph, too, stepped through the wall. He bonked Tango on the head using the handle of a fishing rod. "I also said to calm down, but nope!" He was feigning anger. 

"Had to admit, that was a pretty sick entrance." Grian grinned. When he saw Iris his heart soared, although he noticed she looked hesitant on leaving Ren's side. 

"Sorry Iris for not being with you. Give Grian another chance?" He asked, opening his arms. The invitation made Iris smile widely, and she practically bolted from her spot to give Grian a bone-crushing hug. Grian laughed and maybe felt a tear forming as he hugged his kid. Wow, he really is a shitty person. Why did he think it was a good idea to leave her alone?

... Right, because of what he found out. 

For the most part, Grian actually pushed that thought away. He can test out his theories another time, but for now he had to make up for lost time with Iris.

"The day is still pretty young," Ren stated, standing by Grian and giving him a smile.

"Let's make use of it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ngl motivation isnt really coming to me :( hope you all enjoy the chapter tho and i really appreciate all the support for this book!


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i swear there was an idea but then i somehow direct it to this direction  
> that made no sense but basically im lowkey scared of posting this chapter so let me know what you think

"What is this place...?" Doc softly asked. 

Xisuma didn't reply but swooped down on one of the nearest islands. He softly landed, tucking his wings in and could hear Doc doing the same. 

The island they were on had short, dry grass on them. It was small but large enough to fit a suburban house that looked as if it was broken down and abandoned for decades. What's odd about the Edge was that everywhere they look, it was monochrome. Just black, grey and white. Their own skins and wings remained colorful. 

"Welcome to the Edge, my friend." Xisuma sighed. He spotted a ladder at the side of the house and climbed it. He made sure to avoid the holes on the roof and kneeled down on one knee. Doc stayed low beside him...

In front of them were many islands. As it goes further, Xisuma could see the islands getting closer, nearly crashing onto one another. It was as if it was made up of one giant island, but the structures on the island were completely random and in disarray. He could spot large skyscrapers still standing but with broken edges and windows, some had houses ranging from rustic to modern that also seemed abandoned for years. There were streets, but even the roads looked broken. Despite the difference and knowing the blocks used to build, they were all either in different shades of black to white. 

Between the spaces, there were humanoid figures. They were made of static that disappears and reappears in seconds. Roaming around for an eternity... 

"What are those things?" Doc asked, his hand pressed at the side of his metal eye. It looked as if he was using his eye to zoom into the horizon. 

"There's no name for it, but they're beings that cross the line between players and NPCs. The Edge is... pretty much a place where things that shouldn't exist get tossed here. What upsets the balance and all."

Doc scoffed at that. "How many people even know about this?"

"People who lived long enough in this place." Xisuma replied. "... I have, Mason's father, and the man we're gonna meet." 

"'Ty'?"

"It's best if you don't mention his name when you meet him." 

Doc frowned but didn't continue the subject, instead, he moved on to another. "Okay, uh, what's the plan? I see fog and those beings and not a lot of space. Also, why the fuck is the guy we need to find info from all the way out here? Isn't he afraid of dying?"

Xisuma can already feel a migraine coming. "One question at a time, ugh... First of all, the guy we're gonna meet here isn't the guy we're gonna get the information from. Rather, he's the one that will give us a passageway to get to the actual person who will give us information. Now, I can't disclose the reason why he's all the way out here but what I do know is that he is too strong to die in a place like this." 

"... Stronger than you and I?"

"Stronger than me and you combined." 

Xisuma breathed in and out to relax. He closed his eyes and allowed himself to make the noises around him be white noise. It's just ringing and darkness... 

Then his eyes opened, purple flames flowing out. Doc let out a surprised gasp and nearly slipped off the roof, but he stayed where he was as he watched Xisuma who not only has flaming eyes but flaming hands, both of which were pressing down onto the roof.  
  
Xisuma's vision was indescribable. It was as if he was watching a sped-up version of someone holding a camera and flying around the buildings, except instead of it being a blur, Xisuma registered every single image that crossed his mind. It went on like this for a moment or two, maybe even a minute, but the moment he recognized the familiar purple signature that could only belong to one other person in this place, his eyes went back to normal. 

"X! What was-"

"I was sensing the magic energy in this place," Xisuma explained, panting a bit as he leaned on his arms, head hanging low. He hadn't done that in a while, so it was no surprise that he would be exhausted. Not to mention he didn't get a lot of rest... "Obviously it's full of magic, but the guy we're finding has a drastically different magic signature that I can sense. With that, I managed to track him down." 

Doc blinked, surprise shown on his face. "You... can do that?"

"Yea. Took years to master my magic but- ugh..." Xisuma's legs wobbled and he collapsed when he tried to take a step. Doc was fast enough to catch him and slow his fall. 

His head hurt and his eyes stung, his breathing was a bit shallow, though it was likely because of the atmosphere in the Edge. But his helmet had a filter for that- he made it so why is he so dizzy and tired? 

"Xisuma?! Fuck, I knew your sleep-deprivation ass is gonna haunt us." Doc said, trying to hold him up. "Come on, man. I don't know how to help you in this situation."

"M' fine..." Xisuma, though light-headed, stood up. He adjusted the settings in his helmet, fiddling with the buttons until he could feel himself breathe normally again. 

Doc does not believe him. "Xisuma, dude, I know you care about us a lot but for the love of fucking god you're pushing yourself too hard. Shit- should've just forced you to rest another day or two... I doubt we could even go back through the barrier, huh?" 

Xisuma didn't reply. He went limp. 

"Xisuma? Xisuma!"

* * *

Shit shit shit shit! This can't be happening right now. 

Doc coughed, feeling the air around him restricting him from breathing properly. No wonder no normal player survives here for long. It reminded him of the End, where the air was thick and heavy, but instead it was near suffocating. 

His friend wasn't as heavy as he thought he was, but Doc didn't want to disturb Xisuma's body too much. He seemed to be breathing, it was merely fatigue that took over his friend. 

Which was... while he knew there was a reason for it, it was kind of odd. Earlier Xisuma seemed alright and normal, but it was only when they got through the barrier did he start acting a little weird. When his eyes turned into purple flames, that's really when he collapsed and-

Wait, the magic exhausted Xisuma. That must be it! Xisuma was already exhausted but the usage of a powerful spell must have been the trigger. 

"What am I supposed to do?" Doc quietly asked himself. He doesn't know much about magic, but he learned from Scar that drinking regeneration potions are a great option to heal up from using a powerful spell, or if your body is exhausted from using a spell. Now, the only problem is they didn't bring any potions. 

"One problem at a time, Doc." He sighed. Picking up Xisuma, Doc slowly glided down from the roof. He entered the abandoned suburban house, searching for a place where he could temporarily place Xisuma. It was pretty empty, but he spotted a couch pushed to one side of the wall. He quickly laid Xisuma down. After a quick search through the house, he found a pillow and tucked it under his head.  
  
"Hold on, you idiot. I'm gonna find something." Doc said to Xisuma before beginning his thorough search through the house. 

Okay, how does one make a regeneration potion? Well, first of all they need to have fucking brewing stand, you moron, or you can't make a regeneration potion. 

"I need blaze rod and cobblestone... Shit." Doc looked through his inventory and placed down the shulker boxes he brought with him. It was filled with equipment that conveniently did _not_ have potions. Although, he was ecstatic when he found two blaze rods hidden right at the bottom of the shulker box. 

He used his pickaxe to mine the cobblestone from the suburban house. He also made a crafting bench, and from there he started to craft a brewing stand. 

Once done, he placed it on top of a table. 

"What did Stress told me that one time? It was ghast tears. I need a ghast tear to make a regeneration potion." Unfortunately, there weren't any ghast tears in his shulker boxes or in the chests. 

"X, stay here. I'll be right back." 

Leaving the house, Doc looked around to see if there were any nearby islands he could scavenge for supplies. There was one other island a flying distance away that seemed to be just as abandoned, but large enough. Surely there would be something in there, right? Opening up his wings, Doc leaped and glided throught the sky. Using rockets would likely be heard by the strange beings Xisuma mentioned. 

He landed and didn't waste time before kicking the door down and entering. It was a mess, but it looked a lot like a study room. There were a lot of bookshelves and desks full of more books and-

A double chest at the side. Doc pushed the lid open and had unintentionally let out a whoop of joy when he saw a ghast tear. 

Quite honestly, he wasn't sure if there was gonna be any supplies left in these buildings, especially in the Edge, but it seemed like someone had left these supplies at some point in time.

... No, that doesn't sound write. Who in their right mind would just leave the barrier? People don't even know about the Edge. 

Doc did a double-take on the room he was in. It was a study room for sure, with the bookshelves and books. On the desk there was something on top of it that similarly resembled a photo frame. Picking up the item, Doc cleared away the dust to be greeted by three smiling faces. Two women and a young child. 

The women were in their mid-thirties or so and were holding each others' waists in a loving way. The child, a young boy who looked around ten was standing in front of them, grinning widely at the camera. He couldn't tell the color of their hair or eyes due to the black and white scenery of the Edge. 

"They didn't leave supplies. They can't. It's as if..." Doc slowly said to himself as he placed the photo frame down. He looked at the broken window in front of him, seeing his reflection. 

"... It's as if these rooms and buildings are just copies." 

Walking out of the building, Doc realized that the outer walls looked as if they were wallpapers used for indoors. There was a dark visible rectangle spot where a photo or painting would have been hung for years. Doc looked up and saw a half of a roof, seeing the attic where it had multiple posters taped at the underside of the roof. It didn't take long to realize it was the child's room. 

Doc looked at the island where the suburban house was, then looked at the distant islands pushed together to make it look intimidating and large. 

All of those buildings aren't built in the Edge. They were built by players in other servers, and for some reason their buildings and structures became copies and placed here. Why? 

"I need to get back to Xisuma." Doc frowned to himself. He got the ghast tear, and while he was there found some nether quartz, too. It should be enough to make a regeneration potion. Thank goodness he somehow brought glass bottles filled with water in his shulker boxes.

* * *

"X, come on, wake up. I will not be responsible for accidentally choking you to death."

Xisuma was awake, or at least he thinks so. It was still very foggy and very much bloody painful, but he could feel around him. Or at least he hoped he can, all he can feel was a rough surface. 

He felt a hand pushing his head forward and a cool glass pressing against his lips. He let the liquid flow through his mouth and swallow it. 

The taste of raspberry came to his senses, and that was when Xisuma slowly opened his eyes.

Doc was right in front of him with worried eyes, but upon seeing him come back to reality, he visibly let out a sigh of relief and sat back. Xisuma groaned, feeling most of his senses coming back. Did he drank a regeneration potion? Very likely, since he could feel his magic returning to him. 

"Hey, friend." Xisuma murmured, sitting up with minimal difficulty. His arms feel like jelly and his insides felt as if they were jumbled up for some reason. Luckily, he no longer has a splitting headache. He just needs a few minutes for the regeneration effect to finish its thing. "How long was I out?" 

"Probably an hour or two, not sure." Doc shrugged. "Difficult to tell time around here. It took a while for the potion to brew, so..." 

Xisuma nodded, noting the glass bottle that was still held in Doc's hand, a small amount of pink liquid left inside. "Where did you get the materials for a regeneration potion?" 

He shrugged. "In my shulker boxes and the neighboring island. Lucky me." 

Xisuma looked out the window, watching the black and white swirl around, before sighing. "Yea, lucky you." He didn't expect the buildings to have anything in them except for furniture, so for Doc to find the materials he needed in a chest was extremely fortunate. 

... And odd. 

"I didn't know there were actually items left in chests," Xisuma admitted. "I figured they were empty."

"Yea, well, apparently not." Doc sighed, looking bothered all of a sudden. Xisuma can already hear some alarms just seeing his expression.

"What happened?" 

Doc looked perplexed and unsure of his thoughts. It was as if he had discovered something peculiar and couldn't get his mind wrapped around it.

"It's the buildings on the islands." Doc began, gesturing to the suburban house they were in right now. "I went to a nearby island to find supplies and when I reached there I didn't think too much of it, but then I realized that the building I was in was actually half, or even a part of a house. It was just a study room with a half roof on top. It was as if they just plucked a part of the house, combined it on the island and left it there." 

Xisuma blinked, taking a bit longer than it should have to process through them all.

"I... never thought of that before. You don't possibly think-?"

"That the structures are just carbon copies of the originals and plucked right in this place." Doc finished, but it wasn't what Xisuma was thinking.

"No... that's not it. The Edge is full of beings that aren't NPCs or Players, those who upset the balance-"

"Basically what was not meant to exist gets tossed here, you said it before," Doc said, his voice tensed, realizing where Xisuma was going with his thought process. "That's not the case, is it? Because if that's true, then the buildings around us should be something dangerous or non-existent, completely foreign and something we have never seen before." 

Xisuma was so stupid. He had been here a handful of times now and never considered that maybe, just maybe-

"Every deleted world, every player that dies permanently..." Xisuma and Doc looked up at each other with wide eyes, realization coming down on them. "Every anomaly, corrupted files, things that don't follow the rules of the universe gets thrown here." 

It was a theory that, while plausible, left a sour taste in Xisuma's mouth. It seemed like Doc was thinking the same thing, though his worry was shown more. 

"What about Iris? She's an NPC-"

"I don't know, Doc. Everything is just confusing. I just hope the man we're gonna meet has some answers for us." 

His body had fully regenerated thanks to the potion and stood up from the couch. Doing an inventory check and ensuring he has all of his items, he gestured for the door. "We should get going. We're wasting time." He said, leaving no room for argument before leaving. 

Was he avoiding the subject? He was, he definitely, definitely avoiding the subject. The concept of NPCs, while simple in general, is utterly complicated once you thought about it. Now with the addition of Iris, everything doesn't seem to make sense anymore. Besides, he didn't want to think about the possibility of Iris being in the Edge, or even himself-

... He was wasting time just thinking about the what-ifs. Iris is safe in the server, the hermits can look after her. Xisuma knows where Ty- the man is. There's no point in wasting time. 

Unfortunately, Doc was just as stubborn as him. 

Xisuma barely even reached the door when he felt rough hands pulling him back by the shoulder. He didn't have time to react as Doc practically shoved him against the wall, Xisuma's back facing Doc as his arms were pinned behind him. 

"Doc! What are you-?!" 

"Did you just completely forgot that you passed out and nearly died out from exhaustion?!" Doc asked, his voice raising from frustration. Between the two, Xisuma was actually stronger, but it was due to his lack of rest that he was unable to move out of Doc's grasp. That really did bite him in the ass. 

"I said I'm fine-" "We both know that's bullshit," Doc growled, but he ever so slightly loosened his grip. Xisuma made no move. 

"Doc, we're wasting time."

Never mind, Doc tightened his grip and softly pushed Xisuma against the wall, his helmet practically pressed against the wood. Xisuma grumbled something under his breath, a swear word in his mother tongue as he tried to look over his shoulder and at his friend. 

"Doc?-"

"You're worrying all of us." Doc interrupted him, giving him no chance to speak. "The past month where we rarely see you? Stuck inside your base, trying to fix the server at the cost of your health? Do you know how worried we were as you slowly succumb to that rabbit hole?" 

Xisuma opened his mouth but no words came out. 

"We wanted to force you to rest, but we know how much the server is important to you. We didn't want to take that away, so we watched from the sidelines. Joe and Keralis felt useless when you deny their help, Tango and Mumbo constantly fretted over you, even Grian, who you knew for less than a year, was worried and blamed himself for something that he wasn't even a part of. Everyone is worried about you, but we trusted that you could handle it. You've done it before, we know you could do it again." 

Doc's grip loosened, and he sighed. 

"But this is getting out of hand. Ever since Iris came-" Xisuma stiffened at the mention of her name. "- you've been overworking yourself. Barely sleeping and even caring for your own health. I knew I should've stopped you but dammit I somehow believed that you would get your mind out of the damn gutter and rest. You're an adult, Xisuma, you should've known better. You should've known when to stop." 

Gently, his hands pulled away from Xisuma, giving the admin space to think. 

Xisuma didn't have to think (he was too tired for that) for he already knew what to do. 

"I'm sorry, Doc. For worrying you and everyone." Xisuma began, turning around to face him properly. Doc stared, his expression unreadable. "I know an apology isn't gonna do much, but I can start by saying sorry."

"Eh, you could do better." Doc shrugged. "I know you're sorry, and all is forgiven, really. You're not the type of guy to worry us, even if you tried. You're one of the only people I know that could still function while multitasking sleep-deprived." Then his eye narrowed, giving him a look of suspicion. 

"What I want to know is why now?"

"... I have to ask you to elaborate on that, Doc." 

"Why Iris? You never went to such extremes to risk your own health and life for a child, nonetheless an NPC. Sure, you may or may not have killed yourself for the sake of us hermits because you're that much of a derp... But Iris is an NPC who came out of nowhere. Would you have done the same thing if she was a Player?"

Xisuma struggled to find an answer. When he did, it was unsure. "I... No- I mean, I would still help since she's a child but-"

"Iris would be old enough to know the basics of world-hopping if she was Player," Doc said. "Iris as an NPC is an unknown territory. I'm sorry for bringing this up again, but when we first discovered Iris being an NPC, you were crying while I said those terrible things. You were defending her, despite not knowing why she came here or who she was before." 

Doc paused, and Xisuma felt the air around him thickened. 

"Xisuma, what are you not telling me?"

It was as if time stopped around him as Xisuma pondered over his options. It didn't take too long, for it was clear what he should do next. It was bound to happen eventually, he just kind of wished he could keep it a secret longer. He didn't want to remember the past, living in the Endless Void where he would have never learned how to love or be free. But it was clear that he had to face his old demons at one point or another. 

So he breathed slowly, trying to calm down his nerves. Doc was waiting, but there was something in his eyes that Xisuma recognized. The soft, sincere look of 'I'm sorry, you don't have to do it, I'm sorry' repeated over and over again. Even though he was demanding answers, he still gave Xisuma an out. 

Xisuma didn't take it.

"I'm not who you think I am," Xisuma said, not quite sure how to begin or where to even start. "I wasn't always... this." 

Doc raised a questioning eyebrow. "What do you mean?" 

"I didn't have free will, back then." It was like acid, saying those words. "Everything I did, all of the things I thought? My wants, needs, desires? They weren't mine. I followed a script." 

The vague explanation was somehow enough for Doc to widen his eyes in surprise. Before he could say anything, Xisuma confessed. 

"Doc, I was an NPC." 

There was only silence after that. Doc still looked shocked, but not really confused. 

Xisuma was nervous. "I- It's hard to explain how it happened but one day I just- broke out of my code, I guess? I didn't want to do the things I 'desired' or 'wanted', I just wanted to be free and that's where it happened?" Obviously, that was not what happened. Xisuma briefly remembered the feeling of separation and protests as Evi- as half of who he was, was quite literally torn away from him. The decision he had to make just to be free... is one he hoped he never had to do again. 

"So the universe just allowed you to turn into a Player?" Doc asked, confusing Xisuma.

"Uhh... I guess?"

"Huh." 

Doc was taking this unusually well, which all the more confused Xisuma and made him anxious.

"That's all you're gonna say?"

The hybrid shrugged at that. "I mean, you were spawned as an NPC then turned Player, which would've been the weirdest thing if it weren't for the fact that I was spawned under different circumstances, too." 

Xisuma was... really, really lost. Is Doc saying he wasn't born a player? 

"Doc?"

Doc sighed, looking away. "All I'm saying is that you're not alone. I was spawned not from having parents, but from the relationship between a doctor and a creeper."

"... What." 

He laughed, which just fueled Xisuma's confusion. "It's a long story. Maybe it's a good idea to discuss this another time..." 

Xisuma nodded, agreeing with him as he was making his way to the door. 

"Xisuma?" He turned, noting Doc's smile of reassurance. 

"I'm sorry for forcing you to say all that, I know it shouldn't be my place to ask such things. But whatever you're afraid of about your past? I doubt the hermits would care. If anything, they'll just support you more as a friend. And don't worry, we're gonna find this guy and get answers, and once we get home I will lock you in your bedroom for the next week. Okay?" 

Xisuma couldn't help but laugh. 

"Yea, alright. Let's do this."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> let it be known that i mainly post art check out my ig; zacizach  
> there will be posts about this fic that may or may not help you quench your thirst for lore


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a long chapter to celebrate reaching twenty chapters! more to come at the end notes, for now enjoy the chapter, and get ready the pitch forks :)

After getting scolded by Cleo, breaking a wall via Netherborn powers, and getting _more_ scolded by Cleo, it was pretty clear as day that Grian and Ren had to put more effort into looking after Iris. Of course, Ren's reasoning was far better than Grian's, but their lack of interaction with their kid had shown how much Iris depends on them for love and comfort compared to the other hermits.

Grian, Ren, and Doc are special, it seems. 

So they spent the entire weekend just being together and having fun. They have to admit, they had never seen Iris smile so much in such a short period of time. It was like serotonin, giving Grian and Ren huge smiles knowing Iris was having fun and overall happy. 

Of course, Ren noticed that Iris was missing Doc, too. It's been nearly a week now since he left with Xisuma and while the hermits continue their life as per normal, Iris was getting antsy and kept on bothering either one of them (or anyone, really) about Doc's whereabouts. 

It was Sunday when False and TFC came by to visit Iris. 

"I come bearing gifts! Not for you two, though." False said, dropping two worth of shulker boxes on the land of Hermitville. Grian pouted as Iris hopped excitedly beside the female hermit, trying to pry the shulker box open to no avail. 

As False helped her, TFC chuckled at the dejected faces on both Ren and Grian. "Aw, come on, lighten up boys. You already had your fun with her during the weekend, let False have hers." 

"All it took was a kid and suddenly she becomes the best aunt ever?" Ren asked with a hint of amusement. Apparently False managed to find a bunch of old clothes that would fit Iris, ranging from a lot of colors and style while being simple and practical. There were also some books that were easy to read for her age as well as a few hair accessories. Who knew False, known for her PvP skills, would have such a soft heart for the youth.

"Well, life is difficult for the ladies where the server is mostly male-dominating. Just kidding, False didn't have much of a chance to spoil someone so Iris seems like a perfectly suitable person." 

Grian made a 'huh' sound, watching Iris jumping around False, a blue shirt held tightly within her small hands.

"I came by to check on you lots. Haven't seen you guys visit the mainland for a while." TFC stated, looking at them both in the eye with a soft smile. "Got to make sure you fellas are still handling being a parent."

"Guardian." Grian corrected, but both Ren and TFC ignored him.

"Seriously, though. Heard from Tango that he broke down a wall and experienced Cleo scolding the both of you as if she was your mother. I would've done the same but seeing how happy Iris is, I think ya'll already understand the responsibilities you have." 

Grian sighed, running a hand through his hair, pulling his fringe up while doing so. "Yea... It was stupid in my part. Ren and I are gonna learn from our mistakes." 

TFC nodded, satisfied with his answer. "I know you both will. You heed my warning about her being around redstone?"

As a matter of fact, both of them forgot about TFC's advice about not letting Iris consume any redstone until he mentioned it. Though to their defenses, they never let Iris be near to any items or structures that were deemed harmful. Redstone happened to be part of that long list. 

"Well, she hasn't started violently coughing yet so I think we're in the clear." Ren joked. Grian gasped at the offending joke and punched his hippie friend on the shoulder, hard, causing Ren to let out a cry of pain as he dramatically fell on his knees, clutching his shoulder, and cry up into the blue sky. 

False rolled her eyes at the sight as Iris excitedly picked up what looked like a pair of goggles from the shulker box, similar to the one False has on her head. 

It went like that for the rest of the afternoon, False and TFC chilling with the three of them until they had to go. 

Iris seemed pretty sad to say goodbye to them, but she smiled when TFC promised to bring some candy the next time he sees her.

"Oh! I also got you a little something." False grinned as she pulled out a hand-made plush toy from her inventory. It was a miniature version of Doc, complete with a lab coat and everything about him. There was also a goofy smile on the plush's face. Iris went absolutely wild seeing Mini Doc in False's hand and began jumping to try and reach it.

"Calm down, kid! You have to say please."

Iris stopped and gave False the cutest puppy eyes she could ever muster.

"Okay, okay! You're so darn cute..." 

False lowered her hand so she could take it. Despite her excitement, Iris was gentle in taking the gift from the hermit's hand, staring at the doll with amazement. She played with the arms and poked it's head at the side, before smiling widely and giving False her best 'Thank You!' look. 

Grian laughed when Iris ran back to him and Ren to show them the doll. It was small, probably palm-size in Doc's actual hand but to Iris, she had to hold it with both hands. Giddily, she then scrambled to the rustic house, likely to show Villager Grian about the gift she received.

"She missed him a lot," Ren said, smiling at False. "Thank you, Falsey. It means a lot."

"Eh, not a problem," False said, giving him a dismissive wave. "It's weird not having Doc around, but I heard from Tango that Iris seemed a little sad about Doc's absence. Not sure when those two idiots will come back from their adventure, so I decided to use some extra supplies I have to make a Mini Doc! It'll probably get old but it should be enough to make her get excited about Doc's return." 

They talked, and after that, they had to go. 

Time passed by much later than Grian would've liked. It was the evening and they were sleeping in the rustic house. Although it was cramped, it was still enough to fit three beds. Iris was tucked close to Ren's side, an arm draped over his midsection as she slept blissfully. She was in between Grian and Ren, though the space between the two hermits wasn't that big due to her small size. 

Grian loved spending the weekend with Iris and Ren, so it was reasonable for him to dread tomorrow. He didn't want to leave Iris for days like he did recently, but he knew he had some work to do. He had to leave his theories for another day as he realized just how much work he's pushing away.

Sahara, the hippie commune, and his own personal projects. He had to check on his DGS mini-game, too... 

Mumbo and Iskall are wonderful friends, but Grian learned just recently that Mumbo had been doing all of the Sahara work while he (Grian) was busy with Scar, and Iskall was watching over Stress. He didn't realize that Mumbo was sacrificing his own time to do the work-load all three of them were supposed to share just because he worried about the both of them.

Geez, they all need one long holiday after this.

"Pst, G, you awake?" 

Grian softly chuckled, turning his head to meet with Ren's blue ones. The curtain blocked out the light from the outside, but it was still bright enough that Grian could see the content look on his face. "No, I'm not. Pfft, of course, I am..." 

Ren hummed, adjusting his arm around Iris. "Can't sleep, too?" 

"Guess so. You okay?" 

The reply he got was a hum that didn't answer his question at all. 

"You need to talk?" 

"Just... I miss Doc." Ren softly laughed, nearly waking up Iris who let out a soft noise before resuming her slumber. They stayed quiet for a moment before Ren continued, looking up at the ceiling with a look Grian doesn't quite recognize. "It's weird, I know, but I really miss him, G."

Grian nodded with understanding. "Me too. We're pretty much against Doc and Scar this past couple of weeks, so we barely even see him. But knowing he's out there with X doing... whatever? It's not the same."

It really isn't. There are more than twenty people in the server, and it's not often that everyone sees each other every day consistently. Sometimes they don't see each other for months. As much as it was sad, it was the reality of their world. Everyone understood that they have their own projects and those take months to complete. Eventually, they just got used to it. 

Grian never really felt as if he 'missed' someone because he knew he would see them again at some point. It was also because Grian knew they were safe thanks to the server.

But Doc and Xisuma? They've only been gone for a couple of days and things were... lonely, oddly enough. It was weird knowing that Doc wasn't there to help Scar with the Area 77 project, or spy on the hippies without their knowledge. It was weird knowing Xisuma won't be stuck in his base, looking through the codes for hours just to fix the bugs and glitches before letting out a satisfied sigh as he was done for the night.

It was weird knowing that they're _out_ _there_.

Grian blinked, suddenly remembering how Ren structured his words. 

"Just Doc, eh? Not even our lovely admin?" 

The startled look that Ren made caused a shit-eating grin to form on Grian's face. Even with the lack of light, he could tell that the hybrid's cheeks were dusted with a shade of pink from embarrassment. 

"I- Of course I also miss Xisuma. He left the server to do his 'dangerous' missions a couple of times in the past, so I know he can handle himself. It's just Doc..." He paused, not knowing what to say. Grian just looked amused and mischievous. 

"Doc...?" He repeated, a knowing look on his face. 

Ren let out a huff and turned his head away from him. Grian laughed, not too loud to wake Iris. 

"I'm just teasing you. I didn't know you have a thing for Doc. Ladies not getting in line for you?" 

Ren scoffed, and if it wasn't for the arm around Iris he would have smacked Grian on the shoulder. "Not just the ladies..." 

The soft confession confused Grian until he widened his eyes at the realization. His heart kind of stopped for a moment there and he felt bad for even bringing it up. "It's... Does he...? Was it unrequited?" 

Ren frowned, eyebrows scrunched up in thought. "It's complicated. Yes, I like Doc and I would love to take him out on a date. But Doc? He doesn't really know." 

Grian stared at him. "What does that mean?" 

"Meaning he doesn't know about his feelings for me. It's hard for him to describe, but in short form, he can't and doesn't understand 'love' in a romantic sense. I thought it meant he was aromantic but Doc doesn't think so." 

All this time, Grian didn't think too much about Doc dating anyone. He was always the workaholic, doing projects left and right without missing a beat. But there was a time when Grian randomly thought 'Doc's probably the type of guy to bring roses to every date or something' and left it at that. So to hear that coming from Ren, it suddenly explains some things while also making it complicated.

"What do you mean Doc doesn't know? I thought being aromantic means you're unable to feel a romantic attraction to anyone?" 

Ren sighed. "That's the thing. Doc, well, he said he doesn't exactly feel the same way as I do for him. It's like a different kind of attraction? He said aromantic didn't feel like the correct term, I don't know. But, what I do know is that Doc _wants_ to have a relationship with me." 

Grian didn't know why he felt a heavyweight tug on his heart. "So why can't he?"

"As I said, it was complicated. Doc didn't think it was right to date me when he was so unsure of why he was feeling this way. I didn't want to make things more troubling for him, so I told him to take his time and figure things out. Years later, we're still best friends and I am still pining over him. And he's out there, possibly risking his life in a place where there's perma-death." Ren let out a low groan, using his free hand to rub his face. 

"... Dude, are you okay?" 

"I have it bad, man. I just want to see Doc again." 

Grian didn't know how to comfort his friend. He looked distressed, worried about Doc despite knowing full well that he is capable of fighting, especially with that trident of his. Grian was sad, sympathizing with Ren but also because of something else. He supposed he felt sad for Ren that the person he loved (still loves) hasn't returned his feelings as of yet. Pining is hard, and it's a terrible feeling to have for so long. 

He didn't think about it before, but he realized that Ren had been holding on to that feeling in hopes one day Doc would return his feelings. Ren could've easily moved on, but he had _hope_. 

Grian's chest tightened and he gulped down the feeling of nervousness. If Doc dies out there, it would devastate Ren. Forget their rivalry, Doc is a hermit and their friend. 

Gods, he really wished he had gone out to the server with Xisuma other than Doc. At the very least, Ren wouldn't have to worry about Doc. 

"G? You alright, dude? You look tense."

Ren's soft voice pulled Grian out of his thoughts. When he looked over, he saw a similar look of worry on Ren's face, except instead of it being about Doc, it was directed at Grian himself. 

Grian opened his mouth to reply but realized he didn't know what to even say. It came to a shock when he also realized he doesn't know what to feel. About Ren, Doc, everything? 

"I- I don't know." Grian ended up saying, turning his body so he was laying side-ways. Iris' even breathes were all he could focus on. "Ren, I really don't know." 

He sounded scared. Why? He's not scared he's just-

Perhaps he's scared that he doesn't understand what he's feeling. Maybe he should talk to someone about it? Mumbo? Joe? 

Ren's blue eyes met his, and Grian had to do a double-take because he didn't know Ren could look so soft and _attractive_. He always knew his eyes were blue but were they ever _this_ blue? It reminded him of the sky- free-spirited and calming to look at.

"G? Scootch a little closer." 

Grian's breath hitched, but he did as he was told. He moved closer to Ren, so Iris was literally trapped between the two bodies. She didn't seem to mind, though. Ren reached out for the blanket that was around their waists and pulled it over the two of them, so they were all under the blanket and protected against the cold. 

"If you need someone to talk to, I'm here," Ren whispered and smiled.

Grian chuckled, but it didn't sound as lighthearted as he thought. "Same to you, Ren. Goodnight."

"Goodnight." 

Despite Grian's troubling thoughts and feelings, oddly enough, he managed to slip into a dreamless sleep. 

Unbeknownst to him, Ren was still awake long after he slept, a look of sadness and conflict in his stormy eyes. 

* * *

"I guess Team ZIT became Iris' official babysitters, eh?" 

"Don't flatter yourself, Tango. We're the only ones free today." 

Impulse laughed as Tango let out a huff of air, pouting. He ruffled the Netherborn's bright blonde hair, unceremoniously messing up the neat look which only made Tango pout more. 

"Impyyyyy! Stoooooop!" 

Zedaph picked Iris up by the arms and gave her the height so she could reach out and join in messing up Tango's hair, laughing loudly as she did so. Tango loudly complained and after a minute of letting them do what they want, he finally swat their hands away and began to smooth his hair down. 

"Okay, great! The afternoon is wonderful, Iris finished school with Cleo and Joe, her dads are gonna pick her so... We have about five hours to have fun with this little tike." 

Iris giggled when Zedaph poked her on the nose. He let her down and the two watched the youthful girl dashing towards Tango to bother him. Impulse was glad to see that Iris was much more happier now that Grian and Ren finally hung out with her. They even sent a schedule so that there's time for them and everyone else to see her each day. 

(Impulse also remembered that Xisuma was supposed to be the one who would make the schedule. He was glad he didn't, because it would only put more work on the already tired admin)

"Well, she's already seen the buildings around- Oh! What if we show her our farms?! I don't think she's ever seen how the redstone boys work!" 

That was a good idea. However, it was unsafe. 

"I don't think that's a good idea, man. Redstone is a pretty dangerous substance if not handled properly and besides, our farms aren't really child-friendly." Impulse pointed out. Zedaph hummed to himself, seemingly lost in thought until he snapped his fingers, an idea popping into his head. 

"We have a chicken fountain we made earlier in the season! We can show her that."

"That is a GREAT idea!" 

Much to Impulse's hesitance, Tango was agreeing with Zedaph's suggestion with enthusiasm. He apparently heard that part as he was joining their conversation. Iris was on his shoulders, as usual, with Iris tipping her head to the side as if asking 'Chicken fountain?'.

"Oh, kid you're gonna LOVE it! It's gonna be funny, just watch!"

Before Impulse can put his input, Tango had already adjusted Iris so that they were clinging into each other before taking off to the skies. Zedaph grinned and faced Impulse. "Come on, Impy! Let's go before we lose them!" 

Zedaph also launched himself using rockets. Seeing their distant bodies fading into the horizon, Impulse pushed down the feeling of uneasiness as he, too, jumped and brought himself up above ground, spamming rockets in hopes he could catch up to them. 

The chicken fountain contraption wasn't far. It was one of Tango and Zedaph's earlier redstone projects, where they had a laugh about it since it was pretty funny. Impulse saw a demonstration of it and found it hilarious, but he doesn't know about what Iris would think of it. 

She seemed to be the kind to like animals. Impulse began to worry that Tango would demonstrate their 'Release Fiery Death' lever. Now that he thought about it, is the machine even working? Do they even have chickens inside? 

Impulse had all of those thoughts raging inside his head as they come closer and closer to where the machine was. In fact, he was so pre-occupied he didn't realize they were actually there, the fountain in front of them already.

"Dude, you okay? You look so out of it." Tango asked, worry in his voice. Thankfully, Zedaph was occupying Iris by telling her about the water fountain and what it would do, leaving out the fact that they will be murdered via flaming arrows flying across the room. 

"Yea, man. Don't worry about it." Impulse smiled, trying to ease his friend's worries. It didn't work as he had hoped seeing as Tango visibly frowned. "Impulse? What's wrong?"

"I- Well, I don't-" Impulse was interrupted when they heard a lever click. 

Not only did the clucks of chicken fill the area around them, but Iris' glee was clearly heard as the chickens began to fly up to the water fountain before slowly falling back down. It highly amused the kid- and also made her want to join in on the fun if it weren't for Zedaph grabbing her before she could actually jump in.

"Huh. Who knew it only takes a fountain to make an eight-year-old jump into it." Tango said, causing Impulse to snort because despite his worries, it was actually pretty amusing how easily Iris can be amazed by the most simple of things. 

However, that awe came to a gasp of surprise as the bubble elevator ended up... stopping. 

"Huh? How-" Tango, being the nearest to the lever, walked over to it to give it a double flick. The bubble elevator remained off. "That's really weird." 

Impulse frowned, already pulling his pickaxe out. "I'm gonna go check it out."

"How about we all go? Hey, Iris! Wanna see the behind-the-scenes?" Impulse sighed when he saw Zedaph hyping Iris up. Despite her initial worry, she began to jump on her toes as she nodded excitedly. 

Impulse still doesn't think Iris being near redstone is a good idea, but he nodded anyway. "Alright, fine. Just make sure she doesn't touch anything, okay? I don't want to accidentally harm her."  
"Psh, we're fiiine." Zedaph brushed off the concern. Tango, on the other hand, was giving Impulse a worried look. Noticing the stare, he only sighed and shook his head.

They broke off the wall and entered a small area where the redstone contraption is hidden. Zedaph was holding Iris by the hand, telling her about what each block is and what they do, while making sure they kept a safe distance much to Impulse's relief. 

Tango and Impulse checked through the redstone, even replacing them where they think is wrong but it was actually right. They checked once, twice, seven times but nothing was wrong with it. The redstone just stopped working despite there being a power source.

"That's really weird." Impulse stated, a deep frown on his face as he tried to come up with a solution to this. "We're technical guys but clearly there's nothing wrong here, right?"

"No, no it should all be working perfectly fine." Tango replied, a look of confusion as he picked up a hopper before placing it back down. "The redstone just stopped conducting energy." 

"That is weird." Zedaph was standing beside Impulse, looking over where the line of redstone connected. "I even tried using a redstone torch but that stopped, too." 

"Mhmm, yep and- Iris?"

Iris was nowhere near them. Zedaph must've left her alone as he helped them figure out the problem and-

She was near one of the redstone lines, and to his surprise that particular redstone line was glowing a bright red. But it was shot down by fear when he saw Iris reaching her hand towards it, the redstone becoming alarmingly brighter, almost orange. 

"Iris **WAIT** -!"

Her finger touched the dust, and everything turned white for a moment as an explosion filled the small space. 

Just as it happened, it disappeared. Impulse blinked to get his sight back, wincing as he pushed himself off the ground. When did he fell? He wasn't so sure, but he saw Tango and Zedaph by his side, also getting their bearings back. Impulse didn't get damaged that much, only losing about two hearts before regenerating slowly. The redstone contraption was, well, blown up it seems as the redstone dust flew everywhere and the various repeaters and hoppers were also gone, broken by the impact. His arms, face and legs were dusted by a coat of black ash and red dust. 

Seeing the redstone dust made him lose the color on his face. Looking around, he spotted a small body laying a few blocks away from where she was, covered in redstone dust.

"IRIS!" 

Tango got up first and ran towards her. Impulse gulped, still in shock but conscious enough that he helped Zedaph up to his feet before making his way to them. 

The Netherborn had his arms around Iris, who seemed unconscious with redstone caking her front. However, grey orbs began to flutter open and they all breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that Iris was okay.

Until she started coughing violently, red particles dribbling from the corner of her mouth. 

Impulse stopped breathing when he saw the sign of redstone poisoning. 

"Oh no." Zedaph gasped out. Tango helped Iris sit up as she coughed some more to the point it sounded painful. She even looked in pain with tears forming at the corners of her eyes due to the sheer violent cough impulsively taking over her senses. 

"We need to get it treated." Impulse said, having the conscious mind for that moment. Tango looked numb but nodded, picking up Iris bridal style before leaving the space. 

Zedaph followed close behind, but Impulse stayed just for a moment as he glanced at the spot where Iris had touched the redstone. 

There was no way redstone dust could explode like that. 

It doesn't make sense.

* * *

Ren slammed the door open with his shoulder, causing a loud bang to resonate around the room somewhere in the industrial district.

He couldn't help but breathe shakily as he saw his kid lay on the bed, unmoving. 

"Oh, baby girl..." Ren nearly collapsed on the floor if it wasn't for Grian who ran in just in time to keep a hold of him.

It was just a normal day of working on the hippie commune. Grian and Ren were just terraforming as per usual, taking it as a slow day. Ren had never felt such terrifying feeling of opening your communicator to read a message saying a kid had redstone poisoning. 

Not to mention it was his kid, goddammit. 

He found it tedious traveling to the mainland but god damn he hated how long it took. Rockets were spammed to the point he blew through two stacks just to get to the damn nether hub. Even more just rushing to the district. 

Grian helped Ren walk over to Iris. As she came closer into view, Ren nearly broke down crying. 

She looked sick. Her skin was pale from the beginning, but there was a hint of green and it just made her look sick and devastating. There were dark bags under her eyes and she looked hot in various areas of her face. Ren place his backhand on her forehead but immediately pulled back when he realized how hot she was. 

Tango placed a wet towel over her forehead after that. 

The cool cloth prompted Iris to slowly open her eyes. She visibly perked up at the sight of Ren and tried to reach out to him, making soft painful winces as she did so.

"Hey, baby girl, tulip... It's Ren. Grian's here- we're here, baby girl, you're okay." Ren softly said, his hand reaching out to softly caress her cheek. He didn't realize he was crying until Grian gently wiped his tears away. "You're gonna be okay, Iris. You just got sick, is all." 

Iris opened her mouth, possibly to say something, but all that came out was violent coughs. To Ren's horror, red blood dribbled out of the corner of her mouth. 

"It's okay, Ren. It's redstone, not blood." Tango quickly said, wiping away the red stain with a tissue. "This is just temporary. We all did what we can for now."

"You did all you can?" Grian's voice was dangerously low, and with a sudden horror Ren realized that while Ren was upset and worried about Iris, Grian was angry and furious at the three redstoners in the room.

Impulse, Zedaph, and Tango looked guilty. 

When he felt Grian's presence leaving, Ren swiftly reached out to grab his arm, pulling him back. The two locked eyes which allowed Ren to see the rage in his dark brown eyes. Although, Ren noticed that it was also glowing a bit of purple, too, but he ignored that to pull Grian back closer to him. 

"Grian, it's okay." He reached his other hand out to place on his shoulder, grounding him. Grian let out a shuddering breath as he composed himself. He noted how the purple glow faded. 

Once calmed, Grian came closer to Iris bed and reached out to hold her hand. Even though she was weak, she made sure to tell them that she was fine by squeezing her hand. 

"Hey, Iris. Had fun today?" It was a poor joke by all standards, but it did make Iris grin as she slowly nodded. She coughed and winced, tears forming. Grian wiped her tears away with his thumb. 

Ren smiled at the soft sight and directed his attention to the redstoners, who still looked ashamed. He whispered Grian to look after Iris and walked over to the three, basically grabbing two of the three Team ZIT members by the collars of their shirt before pulling them out of the room. The third member, Zedaph, followed behind. 

Once outside, Ren let go of the taller hermits' shirts. "You have five minutes to tell me what happened or I will let Cleo break your legs." He warned, his voice turning dangerous, as if mimicking Grian's tone earlier. A smile broke on his face, which just intimidated the redstoners more. 

"Or perhaps I should call Falsey? I know how much adore Iris, so..." 

"We wanted to show Iris one of our redstone projects!" Zedaph blurted out. "She was so excited but then the redstone started acting strange and then it just blew up and-"

Ren had to put a hand on Zedaph's shoulder to stop him, all signs of hostility gone as his confusion took over. "Calm down, dude. What do you mean by 'acting strange'?" 

Impulse was the one who spoke next. "The redstone just stopped carrying electricity despite the lever being activated. It was weird because the redstone contraption itself was perfectly fine and should be functioning, but it just wasn't! Then Iris reached out to touch the redstone and there was this sudden energy the redstone dust picked up and just- it exploded, man! It was so weird and it doesn't make sense." 

Yea, it really, really doesn't make sense. It can be due to Ren's lack of redstone knowledge, but he was pretty sure the redstone dust can't produce power on its own. Tango must have picked that fact up as well, because he looked at Impulse in shock and confusion.

"Wait, did you say the redstone dust produced electric current?" 

"Something like that." Impulse sighed. Ren noticed his cheek has a tiny bit of redstone smudged on the side. "But it was- it didn't feel like the normal electric current that comes from a redstone torch or- or anything we know. It came out of nowhere and it was foreign-"

"Impulse, you're rambling. Calm down, mate." Zedaph interrupted his friend. Impulse let out a deep breath, his hands curling to a tight fist as he attempted to calm himself down. Ren frowned as he watched Zedaph look after Impulse. He turned to Tango to ask him a question, but the words he was about to say were long forgotten when he saw the top of Tango's hair turned into bright yellow flames. 

He stared at the waving flames for a moment, before pulling out a convenient water bucket from his inventory. He doused his Netherborn friend with water, extinguishing the fire on his head. 

"I didn't need that." Tango flatly said, the bangs of his hair covering his eyes.

Ren snorted. "I know. Should we tell this to Joe? He probably knows something about this and could help us. He is temp. admin, after all." 

Tango crossed his arms, thinking. His clothes were already beginning to dry and his hair was now getting back into its fluffy texture. "Hm... Yes, we should tell him. And tell the other hermits as well so that they know what to look out for. However, I don't think Joe knows about... what this is. In fact, I think Grian has an idea."

Grian? Why is he being mentioned even though it's about redstone? If anything he's the least qualified to know these kinds of things.

"This is more than just redstone, Ren," Tango said as if he was reading Ren's mind. "Magic is being involved, and Iris has something to do with that redstone incident we had."

* * *

Three days passed. It was Thursday and Iris was still sick, though visibly getting better. She'll be back on her feet in a week's time. 

Grian and Ren were taking turns looking after Iris in his base. All the hermits have at least visited her once during these times. 

Wels had returned to the server and had been brought up to speed as to what he had missed. He too visited her and introduced himself properly. 

Stress was physically better now but had to stay around Hermitville and be trained to use her magic by Scar and Cub. It was a work in progress. 

The odd night cycles and increase hostility of mobs were still pretty much a problem, but Joe's picking up where Xisuma left off. 

However, just like the admin, Joe was unable to find the source of the problem. The codes themselves seemed normal and intact, nothing was out of the ordinary. Nothing was out of place. Still, Joe was sure that there was something around these codings that didn't belong, he wasn't sure where to begin. 

So as the afternoon continued on, he scanned through the codes, one more time. 

Somewhere at the outskirts of Area 77 were Bdubs and Keralis, grinding for some wood and overall spending their day as slow as possible. They were thousands of blocks away from the Area 77 itself. 

"Hey, Bubbles?"

"Ye?" 

"I recognize this path."

One look and Bdubs agreed. It was the same path that lead them to the cave where they found Iris. For fun, they followed the path back to where the cave was. They didn't expect to actually find a horrifying discovery. 

The cave opening that was there many nights ago- there were huge, menacing black vines climbing out of the darkness and into the overworld. Wherever it touched, the grass turned dark and purple, poppies and daisies suddenly becoming vibrant purple flowers that looked nothing that they've seen before. Even the dirt and stone- they were turning into shades of purple and grey. 

It seemed to have stopped spreading, but the fear that gripped both of their bodies urged them to pull out their communicators, running back to civilization. 

Meanwhile, Joe had a thought. 

He stopped scanning through the codes and backtracked. His finger swiped down and then tapped on the folder that held their player files. 

Surely Xisuma would have checked, right? 

Two minutes later, there was a crash. 

"JOE! Are you okay?!" Cleo had slammed the door open and immediately found her friend.

Joe was leaning back against the desk, one hand supporting him and the other covering his mouth. His head was hanging low with his fringe covering his wide shocked eyes. Tears were pricking at the edges of it. 

"Joe? Talk to me." Cleo pleaded, but Joe remained silent, his mind still reeling at the discovery he found because it suddenly made sense but at the same time it didn't and he just doesn't understand any of it. 

Both of their communicators vibrated.

  
**< BdoubleO100> Hey rmbr that cave we found Iris in? Yea theres black vines coming out of it and its scary**  
<BdoubleO100> What the heck is going on?!!??  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> seeing as its chapter twenty, why not make the ending more grand? 
> 
> yes yes i know i deserve getting beaten up for torturing our child but remember, not everything is gonna be a smooth sail, especially if theres a danger lurking in their server and joe ends up being the only three people knowing about iris' true identity. 
> 
> also, i just want to say thank you so much for your support in this story. more than 4000+ reads, 200+ kudos? not to mention a freakin ask blog? thats insane! 
> 
> however, im sad to say that i may not have ttime to write the chapters for the following weeks unless i procrastinate and stuff. im a senior in secondary school and i have finals a few months time. i got to prepare for that. hOWEVER im still active in messaging and socializing, just not having time to create.
> 
> SO if you want to ask me questions about literally anything about the story, art, whatever comes to your mind, i have a main blog that looks like dirt! simply click [HERE](https://zacizach.tumblr.com/) and yea thats it pretty mcuh thank you all again for your support and i promise i'll be back soon!


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yo this story is getting a bit long so i have to scrap an original idea i have and make it into its own arc instead 
> 
> also you have no idea how close we are to the danger zone :DDDD  
> shits about to go down
> 
> also ik i said i was gonna take a break but inspiration struck and i hAD to write it

Everything went so wrong, so quick.

Sneaking through buildings to avoid the static-like beings was easy due to the fruit Mason had provided them to mask their presence. It was disgusting to taste, but it apparently helped. They were so near to the portal, so close. Everything was going smoothly.

But Xisuma suddenly felt a force he does not recognize. As if a powerful being had sent out a message to everyone that received it, warning them of their eventual doom. It was powerful, scary, and worst of all, nothing Xisuma had felt before.

It was so unnatural and so powerful that Xisuma had to stop and clutch his head in pain due to the migraine that followed because _holy shit_ , what was that? 

Unfortunately, Xisuma wasn't the only one that felt the powering source. 

Within moments, ear-piercing screams filled the endless space. The static-beings that populated the Edge had also sensed this dangerous force and violently reacted to it, their bodies spazzing in and out of reality almost like they can't hold onto their forms for long. The spell lasted for a moment until they finally realized the non-human players sneaking nearby. 

"SHIT!" Doc's swear can be heard across the noise, and Xisuma watched through a blurry screen as the faint glow of his trident materialized out of his inventory to impale a body made of bright and eye-straining static. Xisuma blinked rapidly, trying to get a hold of his sight but he found it difficult.

Xisuma got his sword out, the void material being a shimmering black blade that almost resembled the endless void, the handle made out of iron. The force that came made him delirious and unfocused on his surroundings, leaving him vulnerable to attacks. Even through his half-conscious state, Xisuma had the idea to depend on his hearing and senses that were still working normally. 

A static noise came from his left, which caused him to widely swing his sword from the side. It sliced through the static body, and Xisuma watched as the being was cut into two before disappearing into nothingness. He gritted his teeth and swung his sword once more to attack another hostile static. His reaction time was somewhat slow and at the corner of his eye, he saw Doc struggling to fight against multiple static beings at once.

They were immediately being surrounded by all sides. 

Doc had let out a cry of pain as he was struck by one of them, of which the others used the moment to take a jump on him, surrounding him. Immediately after that, he was being separated from Xisuma under a pile of static lines.

One static body actually took a jump on him. In Xisuma's half-confused, half-delirium state, he failed to react on time and was pushed onto the hard pavement below him, bright long static mimicking arms reaching out to clutch against the side of his helmet. There was a brief moment where all Xisuma could hear was constant static.

Xisuma let out a shriek of pain as electricity flowed through his senses, frying his nerves and rendering him utterly useless. 

Except that's what it feels like. His nerves weren't fried like what he thought, it was just painful that there was nothing he could do. It took his entire will, but he managed to open his eyes to discover bright blue orbs staring back at him. The unusual sight was so bizarre that Xisuma momentarily forgot about the agony he was going through.

There was a woman's face with bright strawberry blonde hair and tanned skin. Her eyes were in a shade of blue he had never seen before and noticed a light glow of the lip gloss. However, his eyes went wide in shock when the woman's face glitched-out, only to be replaced by the static figure on top of him. It did this a few more times, enough for Xisuma to see the anguish on the woman's face as she tried to scream without a voice. 

Just as quickly as it happened, the pain soon disappeared as the static body in front of him disintegrated into high-pitched shrieks, a diamond sword stabbed through its body. Xisuma was about to thank Doc but realized that the person in front of him was _not_ Doc, but rather a teenager. 

Before Xisuma could even move, the teen grabbed both the handle of the sword with his scarred hands and with a deafening cry that doesn't really belong to the young man, he impaled the ground with the sword, pushing through the dense earth half-way through its blade.

A powerful wave of purple magic resonated from the sword and out to the surrounding areas. The static beings began glitching and with a cry, they disappeared. It didn't affect Xisuma, and with a glance to his side, he saw Doc a few blocks away, also unaffected (besides the bruises he got from his ambush). As the spell dwindled to a halt, Doc rushed to Xisuma's side, already asking him questions and checking him for wounds.

Xisuma was too focused on the teen to pay attention to Doc. His dark, brown hair was long and untidy, long bangs flowing down to cover only the left side of his, what he assumed, was red auburn eyes. Pink, pale skin was covered with light freckles and cuts from his enemies. His white shirt with a black, v-neck cut was also covered in various cuts from his battles. However, it wasn't the grey pants or purple sneakers that caught Xisuma's attention, nor was it the bracelet which he realized reeked of magic. 

No, it was the pair of black-green headphones complete with its own microphone, resting around his shoulders. 

"Thank you." Xisuma managed to say as Doc helped him up to stand. The teen was shorter than him by a couple of inches, and his face formed a scowl as he locked eyes with the Voidkind. He didn't say anything, only walking away from them, leaving the diamond sword behind. 

In a blink of an eye, the teen was gone, and so was the sword on the ground. 

"X?" Doc wearily asked, unsure of what happened. 

Xisuma didn't reply just yet as he sensed a strong magic source nearby. It was the same magic source he felt back at that rooftop, and he realized with a start that they're actually here.

There's no way he intentionally moved the portal closer to them and saved them... right?

"We're close."

It was in an alleyway between two drastically different buildings. At the very end of the alleyway was a bright purple and red portal rift made out of glass shards that floats. It let out a soft hum of magic, and Xisuma let out a sigh of great relief.

On the contrary, Doc looked cautious and still kept both hands on his trident. "Is this safe?" Doc asked, gritting his teeth in a grimace as he eyed the portal. 

"Yes, it is. We'll be safe through here." Xisuma reassured with a smile. "I suggest putting away the trident. He doesn't know you well so-"

"First impressions by pointing a guy with a trident? Yea, I doubt that sounds good, either." 

Doc put the trident away, but he still looked skeptical. Although, Doc gave a determined nod to Xisuma's way, showing his trust in his friend. Like all the other times, even with his confusion and doubt, Doc still trusts Xisuma. The thought nearly made him shed a tear.

No words are needed to be shared. In absolute hermit style, Xisuma and Doc ran through the portal. 

As their bodies disappear from the plane, so did the portal rift.

* * *

They were in a bar that was dimly lit by floating lanterns. 

Walls were old yet stable, the floorboards creaked under every footstep. There were round tables with its chairs stacked on top of it as if the bar was closed for the night. There were windows with tattered curtains, but outside there was nothing but endless darkness. There was also a clock hung by one of the walls, both hands frozen at the 2.30 mark. Photo frames of unrecognizable and smeared faces covered the walls of the bar, with one of the frames lying down on the floor, face-down with shattered glass around it. It nearly seemed abandoned.

The bar itself was bare of anything worth noting. No bottles, glasses, nothing. Except for a lone man wearing a dark purple cloak that sat on one of the barstools, his back hunched over.

Xisuma and Doc looked at each other once they got their bearings again, a silent conversation happening between them. Doc was _not_ doubtful, but he couldn't put his guard down just yet in case anything goes wrong. They did just got out of a sticky situation, after all. Xisuma only smiled and gave his friend a reassuring nod before leading him to the remaining two barstools left. 

They sat down in silence, with Xisuma seated between the two. He eyed the cloaked man for a while, trying to find anything different about him. There weren't any.

"What the fuck, X?" 

Doc unintentionally let out a snort, of which the hybrid immediately covered his mouth with his mechanical hand when Xisuma gave him a dirty look. 

"Nice to see you too, friend."

"We are _not_ friends." 

The cloaked man's voice was rough and soft from the lack of use. Xisuma could tell he was straining his voice just to convey his utter annoyance through words. He didn't express his concern, knowing the cloaked man would simply ignore it or say something snarky about it. 

"So, you know why I'm here."

The man scoffed as if to say 'Duh, you absolute idiot'.

There was an empty shot glass in front of the cloaked man. With a single wave of his gloved finger, two new shot glasses materialized in front of the hermits with alcohol already inside of it. When Xisuma looked back, he saw the shot glass in front of the cloaked man refilled as well. 

He took the shot glass and drank it all in two gulps. A strained noise came from him, slamming the glass down onto the wooden counter. The force caused the drinks in front of the hermits to vibrate just a bit, not enough to tip over. Doc picked up the shot glass but showed no intention of drinking it. 

"I find it interesting that you saved us. Can you kindly share why?" Xisuma questioned in the most polite tone he could muster, circling the shot glass with his finger. Again, the man scoffed, and if it wasn't for the cloak that hid his entire head, Xisuma would have seen him rolling his eyes. Xisuma didn't find it offensive, he was merely just curious.

"You may be stupid and I may be cold, but neither of us is entirely heartless. Besides, if I leave you to die like a fucking idiot you are, then I wouldn't have a drinking buddy." The man then gave a side glance to the creeper hybrid on the other side of Xisuma. "Didn't think you'd be bringing someone along." 

Doc, now recognizing the attention he was receiving, drunk the alcohol in three gulps. He let out a sigh as he brought the glass down, narrowing his living eye at the cloaked man as he studied him.

"Name's Doc." 

"Don't care." 

The cloaked man was already chugging another shot down his throat despite Xisuma never seeing him refill it using his magic. 

"So... that was you that saved us? Out there?" Doc asked, curiosity in his voice. He didn't sound suspicious or shown malicious intent or anywhere along those lines, this was simply a question that he found curious enough to ask. Still, this made the cloaked man visibly annoyed at him and showed that by staying quiet for the next minute or so, making Xisuma suffer through the silent tension between them.

Then he set the glass down on the counter, much gentler than before. "... Somewhat." 

"Why a teenager?" 

"Doc." Xisuma softly said, a silent request to stop. Doc's mouth formed a line and he narrowed his eyes at him, not out of annoyance but jut simply showing his sour expression of being stopped. This only made the admin roll his eyes at his friends' behavior before directing his attention to the cloaked man. "Listen, you know why I'm here. This isn't our first rodeo." 

The cloaked man didn't reply, just staring off into space. Neither Xisuma and Doc know what he was thinking in his head.

"I know. Which is why I wonder what kind of shit you pulled to bring someone into the Edge. Normal players can't even survive out here for an hour, you're lucky both of you became players under different circumstances. But seriously, coming here sleep-deprived and then passing out? That's new."

Xisuma wasn't sure if he was insulting him or complimenting him. He noticed the words he used to describe them, which told him that the man actually knew somewhat about their origins. This didn't surprise Xisuma that much, considering who his best friend was. 

"Tell me what happened, I'd rather not waste his time if it's something stupid." 

"Believe us, it isn't." Doc hissed. Xisuma put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down, which he did but Doc made a low hissing sound as if he was grumbling to himself. Xisuma frowned and trust that Doc wouldn't say anything that wouldn't agitate the man to do something dangerous. 

The man had moved his head an inch, giving Doc a look before facing forward again. Xisuma sighed.

"There was a young girl that came to our server a few days ago. We named her Iris, but it is uncertain what her actual name is. She's an NPC when I found out she wasn't part of the player files. Something peculiar happened on the night we found her. There was a heavy storm that strike lightning, igniting purple flames that couldn't be extinguished."

For the first time since Xisuma had begun talking, the man tensed up.

"The flames lead us to a cave. Inside of it was black vines that came from another world with purple flowers. There was apparently a plant that a friend of mine stepped on, poisoning her and giving her ice magic, I believe." Xisuma had connected the dots about where Stress' powers came from, but he had forgotten to tell the other hermits about it due to... well... his lack of sleep. 

"They found Iris. She can understand Galactic and there was something she wrote out of a blue one day." 

Xisuma pulled up his inventory and retrieved a small torn paper. It was the same paper Joe had given him the day they left the server. He wordlessly slide the paper across the counter and gave it to the man. 

He snatched it quickly and read the name. 

"Xom..nu... No no, it's... Oh god. _Xonne_." 

Xisuma and Doc gave each other questioning looks. 

"I'm sorry, 'Sun'?." Doc asked, and if the man didn't look distressed before, he definitely is now. 

"Oh god, Xisuma, you fucked up big time." Xisuma doesn't understand why and he failed to give a reason.

"The fuck are you saying?" Doc's voice was dangerously low. Xisuma failed to see his hands clenched tightly into a fist, directing his slowly rising anger into clenching his fingers. But the cloaked man remained oblivious to Doc and instead turned to face Xisuma, his expression now morphed into one of exasperation.

"Why the fuck would you keep the child?!"

The tone wasn't something Xisuma find particularly pleasant, and from Doc's reaction, he could tell he was feeling the same way. 

The chair fell as Doc stood, pulling his trident out and aiming it at the cloaked man. Xisuma knew there was no way he could stop this in time and jumped back just before he could get hit by the trident. There was a sound of teleporting, and from his left, he could see the man standing at one of the tables nearby.

From the teleportation, the cloak had fallen down, revealing his features.

It was like he was seeing a duplicate of the teen he saw earlier but instead of pink cheeks, it was in a dull pale shade, as if he hadn't gotten any blood in them. His dark long hair was long and tied into a low pony-tail, his bangs covering his entire left side and only stopping below the chin. His eyes, which he expected to be auburn red like the teen, was flaring purple from the magic seeping out of him. A pink scar ran down the side of his lip. There was a pair of green-black headphones that seemed broken around his neck.

The dark purple cloak still covered most of his body, but his hands still showed two shortswords that seemed to be made out of void material and dripping purple magic. 

Xisuma was in between his two allies, and with an annoyed grunt, he pulled his own sword out, keeping his sword raised but never actually pointing at one of them. He shifted his gaze from one to another, making sure none of them pulled another attack. The cloaked man remained annoyed, his intent of hurting Doc unknown to Xisuma. Desperate to stop the situation from escalating, Xisuma took a step forward, blocking Doc's path. 

"Doc, STOP." 

"Didn't you hear that fucker?! The way he put Iris down like that?! How can you be so calm?!" As the man was silently suppressing his rage from being attacked, Doc was visibly upset and outraged from his words. The trident returned to him, and thankfully he didn't throw it again. But there was a look of betrayal on Doc's face when Xisuma blocked his path.

"I know what he said, Doc. And we can spend all night assuming the implication of his words, but he's not cruel. Ty isn't like that."

" _Ty_ isn't, doesn't mean _I_ am." 'Ty' retorted, a layer of his voice being dropped an octave lower as if portraying how the Ty he was before isn't the Ty he is now. Xisuma couldn't help but find it... odd and out of place. But he had no time to dwell on those thoughts as Ty continued on.

"Listen, 'Doc', the girl isn't who you think she is." 

"She's just a KID. What more do I even need to know?" Doc was using all his self-control to not go right up on Ty's face. There was smoke hissing out of Doc's mouth, from this Xisuma knew just how much anger he was feeling to the point he wanted to explode to kill the other. "What do YOU know about Iris, huh?!" 

Ty scoffed, and Xisuma spotted him storing one of his shortswords away. "You only saw her for like, what? Two days? Three? You're acting as if you're her father which is far from the truth. How could a hybrid like you be capable of feeling a sense of love, nonetheless having the ability to give it? You can't even tell how you're feeling towards your own best friend and left him with a broken heart." 

Xisuma felt a pang of embarrassment and worry _for_ Doc as Ty practically revealed a secret no one knew except for Doc and a few others. He would have safely assumed that the person Ty was referring to was someone else, but no doubt the word 'best-friend' was targeted at a certain dog hybrid. 

Doc deflated, words striking him as if they were literal swords. The grip on his trident loosened and Xisuma spotted tears forming at the edge of his living eye. Still, the rage continued to swirl inside him. It is only a matter of time before he started seeking the other's blood. 

Ty didn't seem affected by Doc's emotional turmoil, if anything his expression hardened, eyes narrowed as he gave Doc a look Xisuma can't describe. What was he doing? Why is he doing this? This isn't the man he knew all those years ago, nor was it the man he shared time with drinking. Something isn't right. Ty never does anything to provoke the other unless he has some kind of motive-

Suddenly, realization struck him. He looked between Ty and Doc in a frenzy, both of their bodies tensed. 

You absolute _madman_. 

"So why now, huh?" Ty continued when he met eyes with Xisuma, a knowing look on his face. Oh that _crazy_ man, he was _testing_ Doc! Of course, he wouldn't just open a rift for someone he just met. "Why a child? Why Iris, whom you don't know and whom she came to your server. Why, Doc, tell me." 

"I DON'T KNOW!" Doc cried, Ty's harsh words doing a toll on his emotional state. "I can't feel love like what others do- but that doesn't mean I won't stop fucking trying! Iris is just a kid who got into this shitty situation, and if I'm not there to care for her then that defeats the purpose of my own fucking existence!" 

Xisuma didn't understand what he meant by that until he remembered what Doc said before. He was spawned from the relationship between a doctor and a creeper. Perhaps... The doctor cared for the creeper like a child? Quite frankly he is getting tired from all the vague explanations. 

"I care for Iris. I don't care how big the reveal of her existence is or how dangerous- I just want her safe. What other reason do I need to have just to care for someone?" Doc's voice cracked, but it was clear of his intentions and motivations. Funny enough, despite saying he can't feel love, Xisuma could sense every ounce of love for Iris coming out of every word.

Ty finally put his sword down and Xisuma spotted a small smile grace his lips. 

Doc was confused, but one look between Xisuma and Ty made him understood the memo. He flung his trident across the room and let out a frustrated scream into his hands. 

"Are you FUCKING KIDDING ME?! THAT WAS JUST A TEST?!"

"Well, I can't just assume I know everything about you. I had to make sure of your intentions. Xisuma, on the other hand, is an easy read." 

Xisuma rolled his eyes, storing his sword away and giving Doc pats on the back. "I'm sorry, Doc. It came as a surprise for me, too. But I know him, he's never this cruel or manipulative. He doesn't say things just for the sake of it."

Ty looked like he was about to protest but kept his mouth shut when Xisuma gave him a glare. "Still, he could've at least _asked_."

"In his defense, I wouldn't have answered," Doc replied, his anger ever so slowly flowing out. Xisuma snorted at that.

"What, you're on the same side as him now?" 

"As much as he is an asshole, he did make some... points that got me thinking. So thanks for that, dickhead." 

Ty chuckled, amused. He jumped off the table and landed on his feet without a sound. Now that he was standing, Xisuma noticed that he hadn't grown any taller than he was in his teenage years. The cloak covered his entire body, and instead of making him look intimidating it just made him seem smaller. 

The bar around them momentarily glitched. Doc had looked around, alarmed, but Xisuma and Ty kept their eyes locked. 

"How much do you know about Iris?" Xisuma asked, getting into business.

Ty recognized the tone. "Not a lot, that's the other guy's job. I only know because whatever shit that kid got in? It worried him enough to tell me." He paused and looked around the room, noticing it glitching once more. "You felt it, didn't you?"

The powerful force he sensed just minutes ago that not only confused him but agitated the static beings. If it weren't for Ty saving him, then he would have been dead. He gave a nod towards his way. "I do, I just don't really understand it."

Ty hummed, then looked to the side and at Doc. "You look like you want to say something. C'mon, spill it. Might as well." 

Doc narrowed his eyes, annoyed, but decided to take his chance and ask something. "You recognized the word or- or name on Xisuma's paper, and it's not even the same thing. Xomnu, right? But you said it as Sonne, which means 'sun' in my language. Mind explaining that part?" 

Ty let out a small 'huh' sound, impressed with Doc's observation. "It's actually Xonne. Most, er, names in ancient times often start their names with an 'X', whether it is silent or not. Xisuma is an example." 

Xisuma clicked his tongue but didn't say anything about that. 

"It's best if the other guy tells you so you can understand better. I'm guessing the kid wrote it based on its shitty handwriting and can't spell for shit."

Before Xisuma or Doc could retort, Ty sliced his sword downwards behind him. It sliced through the air and formed a rift, the same portal rift with it's bright purple and red light, glass already forming around it. 

Ty turned back to them with a look on his face that Xisuma could only describe was worry. "Listen, Xisuma? Doc? If the shit you got into with the kid is what I think it is, don't take it lightly." He warned. "There's something coming. The universe is calling. That kid _will_ be in danger."

The warning left them feeling unsettled, more so than before. Goodness gracious, they went through all this to try and figure out where Iris came from and now they are being warned of impending doom of which none of them knew what it was and to top it all off, Iris is apparently in danger. It's somehow a miracle both Xisuma and Doc are still calm about it. 

"You're just letting us through?" Xisuma asked, referring to the portal. Ty looked annoyed by the question. 

"If you don't want to see him then I can just close it-"

"No no! we're good, we're good."

Ty took a step on the side, giving them passage. However, instead of going straight to the portal, Xisuma walked right in front of Ty. He went into his inventory and retrieved a pendant. The shiny metal immediately caught Ty's attention and he backed away, giving Xisuma a hard look. 

"No, we are not doing this again," Ty growled, keeping his gaze on Xisuma's eyes instead of the pendant that belonged to him. "I am not part of them anymore. You know this." 

"I do, but-" 

"What the fuck does he want, anyway? Just to make me suffer more? After what we've been through- only to be betrayed in the end? Yea I'd rather not go through that shit a second time. I left for a reason and that's final. I am _not_ coming back." 

Ty was jabbing a finger on Xisuma's chest plate with the last couple of syllables. There was no sound except for the gentle hum of magic coming from the portal- not even Doc, who he expected to interrupt, was making a sound as he watched the two old friends argue. 

"Adam is not asking you to come back," Xisuma softly said. Ty looked taken back by the use of his old friend's real name, but he still kept up his guard. The childish action made Xisuma sigh. "You always assume the worst but never let me say a word about the reason why I'm even giving you this-" 

"I don't want to hear it."

"See? That's why we always have this argument every single time we see each other." 

It was startling how one moment Ty was using Doc's feelings as his weapon only for him to act like a stubborn teenager the next. It suddenly reminded Xisuma of all the times he visited Ty years ago, where the only thing shared between them was insults and questionable motives, most of which came from Ty's side while Xisuma endures all of that. 

Not to mention he kept on insisting Ty on accepting the pendant. 

"Look, Ty-"

"Don't fucking call me that." 

Ty's voice suddenly changed into one of a lower octave, his eye glowing a shade of purple as he glared at the creeper hybrid who now stood beside Xisuma. Doc remained stoic at the rude reply, but Xisuma could sense his annoyance. 

"Whatever. I don't know you and honestly, I could not give two shits, but clearly someone does. This Adam guy? I don't know him either, but if he somehow persuades Xisuma to give you this stupid pendant after all these years then perhaps try to reconsider the fucking reason why he would go through all this trouble just to give you this? I still don't like you for saying all that shit, but come on? Adam sounds like a decent dude that wants to reconnect with you." 

Ty remained silent. Seeing his chance, Xisuma began talking before any of them could interrupt. 

"Adam's changed, Ty. He's made stupid mistakes and knowing him, I know he's still regretting ever making them. But he's trying to make amends for it by doing good. The thing he said he always wanted? To settle down and have a family? He gave up his immortality for his son. And he's not just trying to reach out to you, he has been meeting up with some old friends and the members of your team for the past couple months now." 

Ty looked in pain as if he didn't want to believe it. "... The others? Like... Like Mitch and Jerome and Quentin?" 

Xisuma smiled. "Them and more." He brought the pendant up to show Ty, the letters 'TC' engraved at the front. It was scratched in multiple places, and even looked rusty at some edges but it was still entirely Ty's. "Adam is not asking you to come back. He just wants you to know that he still cares about you, and whenever you are ready, he will greet you with open arms." 

Ty looked hesitant, but for the first time in years he finally reached out to take the pendant from Xisuma's hands. His gloved hand trembled but whether or not he knew he didn't let Xisuma know. Quickly, he snatched the pendant and inspected it closer. 

Xisuma saw tears pricking at the edge of his eye. 

"I... I'm not ready to forgive him." Ty said. 

"He's not asking you to." Was the reply. 

The admin could see Doc rolling his eye from beside him. "Go give him a booty call or something, pretty sure you guys have some pent up feelings left over." 

Xisuma nudged Doc on the side hard while Ty softly laughed. "Alright, alright, it's fair if you can talk shit about me after I talked shit about you." 

"Speaking of which, how the fuck do you even know that?" 

Ty pointed his head towards the portal, answering his question. Doc rolled his eyes at that, mumbling a few colorful words under his breath. 

"Go," Ty said. "You've wasted enough time here. He's waiting for you on the other side."

There was a sense of finality in his tone, telling Xisuma that he's done talking now. It was supported when Ty pulled the hood over his head, covering his features except for the dark bangs that flowed out like some kind of oily waterfall of hair. Although, Xisuma realized that under that cloak, Ty had somehow put on the pendant around his neck. There was a sense of relief once he saw that, knowing Adam's request was finally done. It took a couple of years, but it was done. 

"I'll see you soon, friend."

The cloaked man didn't reply, but there was a smile on his face as he gave a brief nod towards Xisuma's way. The admin turned to his partner, who gave him a look that says 'You have a lot of explaining to do once we're done'. The look made him chuckle. 

Before Xisuma could walk through the portal, Doc let out a loud 'oh!' and turned back to the cloaked man who gave the hybrid a curious look.

"Oh, Ty?" 

The cloaked man remained silent. 

"Whatever your feeling towards Adam, whether it be love or anger, give him a chance. Don't lose your friendship over something that can be fixed. Adam's doing his part, it's your turn to do yours."

Again, the cloaked man didn't say anything, but there was a look of admiration in his purple eye as he once again nodded towards his way. 

Doc grinned, and much to Xisuma's surprise his friend placed a hand on his back and shoved him through the portal before following, leaving behind the cloaked man that stared at the emptiness of the bar for a moment or two, before finally shutting off the portal with a wave of his hand. 

The cloaked man reached up to touch the pendant, tracing the letters that made up his team. For the first time in what seems like a million years, Ty laughed as tears streamed down his cheeks. 

* * *

When Doc opened his eyes, he realized how dim the room was. There was barely any light to illuminate the walls where all he could see was pitch black. He and Xisuma were sitting down cross-legged on strangely soft and fluffy pillows. In front of them was a low table with a single candle supplying the only source of light that gave them the ability to see only about five blocks around it. There was a tea set, with two cups already steaming with tea and coffee for both of them respectively. Doc briefly checked his cyborg eye and- yep, he still can't see even with night vision. 

A man sat in front of them. Just like Ty, he also wore a dark purple cloak that he had over his head. However, unlike Ty who used his cloak to cover his entire body, this man only has part of the cloak covering the entire right side, leaving the left side alone which let Doc see a silver shoulder pad holding the cloak in place. He wore a dark robe underneath with half of a red creeper face imprinted on the front. On the cloak there was a bright purple lapel pinned into the cloth, showing the shape of a square with the two corners separated into dots diagonally. 

There was a white crown-like bandana pulling his brown bangs back, but it was evident it became futile when strands still tickled his eyebrow. His eyes were in a shade of dark purple, and there was a kind smile on his face as he poured himself a cup of tea. 

Doc and Xisuma looked at each other briefly before turning back to the man in front of them, who had already started sipping on his small cup. 

The man let out a satisfied hum as he tasted the beverage and delicately put his cup back down on the table, his hands still around the ceramic as he eyed the two players in front of him. 

"I was expecting you, Xisuma Void." He said with a pleasant grin. Despite the politeness, Doc couldn't help but feel uneasy being in the same presence as him. This was no doubt the man they were looking for. Xisuma picked up his cup and took a small sip, his eyes slightly downcast before looking up and giving him a polite nod. 

"Just Xisuma, thank you." The man in front of them nodded, mumbling an 'of course' as he took another sip of his cup.

At that point, he turned to Doc, who had picked up his own cup to give it a sniff. 

"I see you brought a friend. Who do I have the pleasure to meet?" 

"Uh, Doc." The hybrid replied, goosebumps forming on his skin.

The man let out a soft laugh and returned to Xisuma. "My apologies, Xisuma. I know you must be a busy man but it's been a long time since I met anyone new." 

Doc coughed into his arm, catching both their attention. "This is nice and all, but who are you?" 

The man gave a questioning glance towards Xisuma, of which Xisuma gave a small shake of his head.

There was a moment of silence before the man grinned widely, almost on the brink of craziness.

"I suppose we should get started, then."

He clapped twice, and Doc's vision went blank.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> haha itll be funny if i make another side story featuring x with the tc members because of how much lore there is featuring about them hahaha  
> coughcough
> 
> EDIT: OKAY QUICK LITTLE INFO since im not sure whether or not you knew about teamcrafted and stuff
> 
> Around 2013 there was a group consisting of well known minecraft youtubers such as skydoesminecraft, deadlox, setosorcerer and a bunch more. they have long disbanded but i decided to add them in the story because a) i rather not make more side characters b) its really just for nostalgia sake and c) i think it can be interesting due to the nature of the world building in this fic. its clear that the hermitcraft server isn't the only world, why not include the others? 
> 
> i may add more youtuber cameos that have made a minecraft series at some point


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yknow its a hard life when ur making a hermitcraft fanfic but theres like 20+ hermits inside 
> 
> so anyway lots of povs inside

"Iris, love? You should be in bed." Mumbo frowned as he watched the stubborn eight-year-old walk around her room, kicking random papers across the floor and mumbling gibberish to herself. She ignored Mumbo's words and continued to walk around as if she couldn't stay still for even a minute. 

It was a day after Bdubs has sent that strange message. Every single magic-user or those who know magic in the server had left earlier in the afternoon to check on the cave and its black vines. The remaining non-magical players were left to their own devices, some are tasked to 'make sure Iris is both safe and occupied'. Ren had looked after Iris in the morning before Python came to take the shift. It was Mumbo's turn now, and Iris was getting restless. 

According to the others, Iris was still sick and needs recovering from her redstone poisoning. However, Mumbo found it strange that Iris was getting better at an alarmingly fast rate. Redstone poisoning is, while uncommon to have when doing redstone work, can be very harmful to your health and can put a very heavy beating to your immune system if not treated immediately. It takes more than a week to recover fully, and even then you may get a violent coughing reaction for no reason except for the redstone particles still in your lungs. 

Iris was different. Within days she seemed to be getting better and she was coughing less now. She only has a fever and can get drowsy at times, but it was still a fast recovery that surprised many of them. As a child, having redstone poisoning was practically fatal but Iris was here proving everyone wrong by being an absolutely stubborn child. 

"Iris, please, you're still running a fever." Mumbo placed his hand on Iris' forehead before she pulled away, feeling the hot temperature. "Iris, I know it's hard for us to communicate but you got to work with me here, love. You need rest to recover fully so that you can go outside again." 

Iris huffed, now simply moving her body back and forth, swinging her arms around. She later puffed her cheeks and let out a loud raspberry-like sound as she trudged back to her bed by the colorfully drawn wall. Mumbo couldn't help but feel awful seeing Iris wrap herself with a blanket, blocking herself away from the outside world. 

There seemed to be something bothering her, making her restless and wanting to go out. Neither Python nor Ren had said anything about her strange behavior, so Mumbo guessed she began to act this way when he arrived. 

Mumbo puffed one side of his cheek, thinking as he looked around the small room that became Iris' room. It was in one of the pillars in Grian's base, now modified to look more like a room and not just the inside of a pillar. There was a lot of clutter around, mainly drawings and books. When he picked one of the papers up and turned it over, he realized the majority of the papers were notes of redstone contraptions. 

Apparently they didn't want to waste paper and just gave the ones they don't want to Iris. 

"Mmmm."

The hermit may have jumped a few inches in the air when he heard Iris speaking... or mumbling? One of the two. The young girl had sat up from her bed, looking at him with a bit of a longing expression. She had Mini Doc held tightly in her arms, and it took Mumbo a minute to understand. 

"You wanna cuddle? Is that it?" 

Iris nodded. She looked shy and even embarrassed to admit she wanted to be close to someone. It only made Mumbo smile because it reminded him that Iris is just a kid, of course, she's gonna want to be smothered in love and cuddles. Unfortunately, all three of her fathers are busy so Mumbo would have to provide that love and cuddle. 

Except, well, he had never done anything like that before. Cuddling and all that jazz. It doesn't mean he's against it, just means Mumbo would have no idea what to do. 

The concept of cuddling with a child shouldn't be that difficult, right? 

Mumbo shrugged off his jacket, placing it over a nearby chair that was pushed against a desk. He spotted a storybook that was in English on the desk, leaving him confused until he remembered False gifting her the books a few days ago. 

"Iris? Would you like me to read you a story?" 

Iris made a noise that resembled a 'Yes!'. Laughing to himself, Mumbo also took off his tie for maximum comfort and picked up the book. He walked over to the bed and watched as Iris scooted herself over to her side, giving him space. 

She was rather small, so fitting a 6''5 mustache man into the bed wasn't a challenge. Mumbo had to force himself to relax when Iris positioned herself so she was resting against his side, his arm around her body. Did Grian or Ren have to do this every night? How do they do this without worrying about accidentally crushing her? 

Iris made a mumbling sound and nudged the book with her finger. 

"Ah, right, storytime. Uh..." 

Mumbo checked the summary at the back and let out a small 'huh'. He didn't know False would have such stories in her possessions. 

Iris bonked her head against Mumbo's side, looking displeased. 

"Alright, alright," Mumbo flipped to the first page and began reading. "Once upon a time, there was a young village girl..." 

Iris remained silent as Mumbo told the story. Occasionally, she would point at a word in question and Mumbo would try to describe the meaning of the word the best he can. Though most of the time she would be quiet, listening with her eyes half-closed. 

The story was about a village girl who felt as if she was not part of her community, shunned out by the others for being different. So she set out with her most-prized possessions and her pet wolf, hoping to find another home somewhere. She faced many challenges, most of which are really just the terrains holding her back.

The village girl stumbled upon a small group of adventurers. They happily let her come with them until they find a village or a community that she found fit. 

Except that as she spent more time with the adventurers, she formed a bond with them and felt as if she belonged. In the end, she didn't find a home in another village, but rather by being with the adventurers that accepted her as part of them. 

The book wasn't long, about fifteen minutes long. Iris was still awake and she was idly poking on one of the buttons of his shirt.

"Mmmm...?" Iris was mumbling again, but this time she seemed like she wanted to say something. She looked frustrated at herself. 

"Iris? What's wrong?"

"Hnng.. oommm..." Iris sat up and let out a huff of frustration. She tried again, and again, to say the word. Mumbo was worried that maybe she was straining her voice a bit too much. 

"Love, I think you should write it down or-"

Iris shook her head no, a determined look on her face. 

"Hmmm..mmm... Hooo..." 

Iris was still at it, much to Mumbo's worry. In fact, she was so into trying to utter a single word that she got out of bed and started pacing back and forth, her arms swinging. It was at that moment that Mumbo also found something odd about her. 

Joe and Cleo had told everyone that Iris' intellect was incredibly high for her age, and she had picked up the English language quite fast. She was unable to write or say English, but she can read or listen. 

Iris looked frustrated at the fact that she can't seem to say the word she wanted to say, and Mumbo thought it was because she hadn't learned how to speak. But as he watched her get upset, he realized that perhaps it's not because she doesn't know how to speak, but rather because she can't. Something is restricting her from being able to talk or write in English. 

Before Mumbo could ask, though, Iris suddenly stopped her pacing and stood right at the center of her room. Her back was facing towards him and Mumbo had to gulp down the creepy feeling of seeing an eight-year-old just... stand there. 

Then she turned, blinked, and smiled. As if nothing happened. 

That was weird. Too weird. 

"Mumbo?"

Mumbo shrieked, causing Wels to shriek as well. Iris just looked between them in confusion.

"You scared me, man!" Wels laughed, a hand on his chest as if trying to calm his racing heart. "I just wanted to check on you two, see if you need any help? I haven't been in the server for a while, so I thought you might need an extra hand? If you want to, of course." 

The thought of Iris acting so strangely was still fresh in Mumbo's mind. He knew there was something unusual about Iris' arrival in their server, but he was rest assured by literally everyone that she was alright. Mumbo had stopped himself from worrying about Iris because she does not show any signs of being dangerous. 

But there was still something off about her. Her behavior, how she does certain actions in a peculiar way, how she reacts, it's all odd and something that a player doesn't exactly do. 

It was troubling to think all of this because it makes Mumbo feel guilty and uncomfortable. Why does it keep on bothering him? He barely interacted with her the last couple of days, so why does it always happen whenever she comes into the picture?

"Mumbo? You alright, man?" 

Wels was looking at him worriedly, with Iris gripping his hand. She smiled, looking between the two hermits as if they were having a conversation and she was following the one who was currently talking. Mumbo gently nodded, standing up. 

"I'm alright." Mumbo said with a smile, but even he knew it was fake. Wels gave him a look that definitely showed he did not believe him, but sighed as he squeezed Iris' hand. 

"Why don't we visit Stress and Iskall? I'm sure the kid would want to see them." 

Sure enough, Iris began nodding happily and jumping around, but for some reason Mumbo doesn't exactly see that happiness in her eyes.

There was something else.

And for a brief moment, Mumbo saw Iris crying out for help. 

That look disappeared a second later, and Mumbo was left in a state of confusion and disbelief. 

There's something wrong. 

"Mumbo?"

"Y-Yea, let's go visit Stress and Iskall." Mumbo agreed quickly, already collecting his jacket and lie. He didn't bother to wear the tie, just stuffing it into his pockets. 

Wels looked worried, but he didn't say anything about the matter. He only lead Iris out the room, telling Mumbo they'll be waiting at the nether portal. This gave Mumbo time to pull out his communicator to send a message to the only person he think could help him.

* * *

Cleo was worried. No, not just worried. Perturbed? Uneased? If only Joe was here to drill her head with difficult words to describe just how fucking concerned she was about Joe. It's been about a day now since she found him in a state of shock and confusion. 

Now he has completely shut out everyone and everything without a single explanation or even telling anyone. Cleo didn't know if she was supposed to reveal that their temporary admin had ceased to function for whatever fucking reason, but she did anyway because it was important. Their fellow hermit suddenly just decided to disappear off the face of the earth, so of course, this was gonna fucking concern everyone. 

But she knew Joe isn't entirely unreasonable, so there was a reason why he decided to shut himself in. So she asked everyone to give Joe some space and let her look after him. The hermits were worried but respected that decision and said if there is absolutely anything they can do, just say the word. 

Well, she wants someone to tell her what the fuck is wrong with Joe.

"Joe?" Cleo walked into the same room she found Joe in just yesterday. Everything looked the same, except Joe was sitting at the edge of the bed, a screen in front of him. He looked tired with bags under his eyes that could compete with Cleo's. He also look unnaturally pale, and every movement he does was followed by a twitch of a finger or hand. 

Cleo frowned upon seeing her friend in this state. She sat down beside him and watched him go through the many lines of code that she could not understand. 

"You need to rest." Cleo softly said. Joe didn't say anything, and the fact he didn't actually scared Cleo. She had never seen Joe isolate himself like this before. It looks alienating. With a shocking realization, Joe also looks like the same state Xisuma was in when he was here. 

The zombie-hybrid grumbled to herself, deciding that there's no way she can ignore this. She swiped her hand down on the screen, causing it to glitch out before disappearing. Joe was about to protest but had let out a small yelp as he was forcibly pushed down on the bed, face-first on the pillow. 

Cleo unceremoniously sat on top of him, pinning him down despite her rather light weight. "Joe Hills I will not fucking repeat myself. You need to rest." 

Joe made a noise that vaguely sounded like an agreement. Cleo loosened heer grip and got off him, allowing the male hermit to turn around and sigh. Cleo fell right beside him , their shoulders and arms touching. 

"... m'sorry."

"No, you're not."

The poet let out a very soft chuckle, leaning his head at the side to rest against Cleo's shoulder. His long fringe tickled her cheek, and Cleo turned over to greet the mess of greasy brown hair on the face. "You need a damn bath."

"I know."

"... Joe, what's wrong?"

Joe didn't reply and Cleo was about to ask again until she felt his arms slink around her body. She slightly froze as Joe practically cling himself onto her, his face tucked at the crook of her neck. She could feel him breathing there, and even though they (admittedly) have done this a couple of times in the past, she couldn't help but find this action so intimate and vulnerable at the same time. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer and gently stroking his hair. 

"Nothing is wrong, at least I don't think so." Joe finally said, pulling away from her neck just enough to talk properly. His voice was soft, unsure and nearly fearful as if he was not sure of how Cleo would react and was phrasing his words carefully. "Xisuma was unable to find the source of the glitches and bugs and- and the mobs and stuff, so I figured, why don't I check it out? Now I understand why Xisuma spent many nights on the bugs..."

Cleo frowned. Was Xisuma unable to find the bug that caused the night cycles and the mobs to act strange? Why didn't he just tell them that instead of trying to find the source knowing it was practically pointless? Who was she kidding, this was Xisuma, he never just gives up on something like this if it meant keeping them safe. 

"Is that what made you stressed out?" Cleo asked gently. There was a moment of hesitance from Joe, before nodding. Cleo hummed in reply, knowing full well that that was a total lie. But she did not dwell on that, though. "Why don't you rest, hun? You haven't slept since yesterday." 

She felt Joe nod. 

"... Do you mind if I leave you for a bit? I have to meet with Scar and the other hermits to check out those black vines Bdubs mentioned." 

Again, Joe nodded. 

So she slowly unlatched herself from Joe, who actually whined at the loss of contact. Cleo had rolled her eyes at him when she saw Joe pout, knowing it was just him being Joe. But before she could fully stand, Joe had reached out, grabbing her wrist.

Cleo turned in confusion and saw the worry and fear in his blue eyes. She blinked when she stared back, realizing just then at how blue his eyes were. There were specks of green and brown but it was more on the blue side, like a blue ocean. 

She realized the action paralleled to the time they were in one of the rooms in Area 77, where she reached out and grabbed Joe's wrist. 

The hybrid slowly sat down, still looking at Joe and still letting Joe grip her wrist before it moved to simply intertwine their pinkies.

"Cleo, I don't know if the black vines are safe," Joe spoke quietly. "But whatever happens? Don't let Iris get hurt." 

The request confused Cleo because Iris was with Mumbo, wasn't she? And they were all the way in the mainland and not in Hermitville. Still, she kept his words in the back of her mind.

She also didn't ask why.

* * *

When Tango, Scar, Grian, and Bdubs went back to the cave, they immediately knew that Iris has something to do with the black vines.

Truth be told, they all have forgotten about the cave where they first found Iris, and ultimately the black vines that Grian saw and where Stress first got poisoned. 

"NO WAY! It was the vines that gave Stress those powers?!" Bdubs had yelled out loud when Grian retold the story. If anything, it actually makes sense. It surprised Grian that it took way longer than he should have to realize the connection that the plant that Stress stepped on, thus poisoned, would be the one that would trigger her having powers. How did that happen? He has no idea, he needs Xisuma for this theory. 

The black vines themselves weren't harmful to the touch, but they were also difficult, if not immune to any attacks they would give. So they were basically indestructible and would likely continue to spread if they don't know how to stop this. 

"Can we even go inside the cave?" Scar asked himself, staring at the endless pit of darkness that was the cave. Despite the afternoon light that should've at least given them a view of the inside, it was still pitch black. "Tango, can you throw a fireball in there?"

Tango nodded and summoned a ball of fire in one palm. He threw it at the cave, and all of the hermits were shocked to realize the fireball immediately disappear the moment it entered the cave. 

"... Okay, so we all agree we won't go inside." Bdubs said. Everyone else nodded. "Why is there so fewer people?" 

"We need to find out what kind of magic this is." Grian answered, stepping forward to kick the vine. It didn't react to his touch. "Or... at least try to, in the best of our abilities at the moment. Xisuma, being Voidkind, might know about these vines but he's not here right now. Stress is still being trained by Cub in using her magic. I considered Iskall scanning these vines but Doc told me that he scanned these the first night we entered the cave, and came up with nothing."

"What about Iris?" Bdubs suggested.

"She's still recovering from redstone poisoning. Besides, this doesn't look safe. Even though it's harmless, I don't think it's actually, well, think of it as a redstone contraption. It's not turned on, it needs a trigger or a button to activate it." Tango said.

Grian looked at the Netherborn with an eyebrow raised. That was an interesting way to say it. "You think Iris will somehow activate these vines?" 

"I mean, you said it before, didn't you? The vines reacted to Iris, protecting her from you guys until you calmed her down. I figured if we can't find anything else, we could try bringing Iris here to see if anything happens."

That was actually a good point. Grian still doesn't want Iris to be anywhere near anything dangerous, but it was a rather possible solution that he might do. 

"Oh yea, G, you said something about needing a list for all magic-users? Why?" Scar asked. Grian made an 'oh' sound, remembering the message he sent a couple of days ago. It was a revelation he figured out and had to know. Tango and Bdubs looked at him weirdly as Grian checked through his inventory, plotting down an ender chest before looking through that.

"I suspected Iris can see magic." Grian began, pulling out a shulker box from the ender chest. He pulled out a small folder from the shulker box and opened it, revealing drawings Iris had done before. 

A drawing of Grian with wings behind his back and eyes around his head. Bdubs with squiggly lines around him. Tango with fire surrounding his entire body. Cleo with skull drawings around her head. Scar and Cub, with scary faces surrounding them. Stress with snowflakes surrounding her entire body. And Xisuma, with a single eye of ender above his head. 

"I wanted to bring you all and Iris into one room to see how she'd react, but in the end, I figured I'd just tell her to draw everyone by memory. Only these people have any significant shapes around them, everyone else was normal." 

Bdubs pointed at Cleo. "Cleo has magic? I didn't know that." 

"Not exactly," Tango replied. "Cleo was... er... struck by witch magic, causing her to be a zombie in the first place. It gave her the ability to use magic but not by a lot, enough to help her with her armor standing projects." 

The red-bandana wearing hermit nodded, mumbling an 'oh' to himself. "Cool, so basically Iris can see the jungle magic still lingering around me, is it?" 

"Yes, which is why Grian and I found it weird." Scar frowned to himself, arms crossed. "Players who can't use magic normally can't feel magic energy. But even so, those who has can't feel magic passively, they have to use a certain spell to even pinpoint the exact type of magic surrounding the area, if not it will just be a lingering feeling that can be ignored. Tango would agree with me that Iris does not possess any magical ability, but can somehow sense- not to mention, see magic."

Tango nodded. "Yea. Players who use magic or in this case, got possessed, may have a certain magic energy that belonged to them. For example, Bdubs has jungle magic still around him even though he no longer is being possessed."

Bdubs mumbled a 'of freaking course' under his breath.

"That's not the weird part. Us magic users can feel magic energy, but we can't visualize it. Normally it's just in colors. Iris is different- she can see the type of magic we have, and is able to form a visual like what the drawings show." Grian added, storing the drawings back into the folder and into the shulker box

"Alright, cool, I realized this has nothing to do with the vines except for proving that Iris is really just a weird child." 

They all went quiet after that before agreeing with Bdubs' statement. They really did went side-tracked, and they haven't been here for a full hour yet. 

"Hey, fellas! How are you all doing?"

To make things better, Grian turned around to be greeted by literally everyone else in the server. Everyone except for a handful.

"What are you guys doing here?" Tango asked, surprised to see so many people at once. Impulse shrugged at him. 

"Well, we couldn't help but be worried so we figured, why not come over and help out the best we can! There isn't a lot of magic users in the server, but it doesn't mean there aren't some of us who know a bit of arcane magic." 

Grian actually doubted that, but he was glad to see so many friendly faces that he knew would support them, even if anything magic-related was out of their comfort zone. It was then that Grian realized that maybe this was the time to actually tell them about a part of him that only a few know- a quick glance at both Scar and Tango, and saw them agreeing with his thought process. 

However, there was a low humming noise of magic coming from the cave. Everyone began backing away as the dark soil began to spread outwards, the vines crawling ever so slowly through the darkened grass as the unknown source of power began to grow. A few purple flowers sprouted from the ground, and even though it was beautiful to look at, some of the hermits were quite cautious at the sight. 

"Alright, what's the plan?" TFC asked from where he was. "Cuz' I know I ain't thinking of one." 

"Well, we can't do anything because going in the cave is dangerous and trying to get rid of the vines is impossible. We tried." Scar sighed, looking at the vines with distaste. 

Python poked at the vine with his sword. "Perhaps there is another thing we can look into?"

False nodded to his suggestion. "Yea! Like, I dunno, another clue?" 

Everyone turned to Grian, making him shudder at the sudden attention. "Grian, was there anything else that happened in that cave? Like, something weird?" Jevin asked. 

Was there? The flowers glowed when Grian sang and there was the case of Stress getting poisoned. But what about before that? They were walking through total darkness when- 

"A purple light!" Grian shouted, shocking everyone. It even made Zedaph shriek loudly at the sudden declaration. "There was a purple light that passed by our heads when we were in the cave."

The other hermits were confused until Keralis let out a soft 'oh', catching everyone's attention towards him. "So that was the light that went out of the cave! It was raining so we weren't sure what it was, but it was there." 

"Yea... You're right." Impulse agreed, nodding his head. "Perhaps it was actually something important to the vines? Did it go somewhere? Can we find that light? Is it even around?"

"Worth a try." Scar and Tango looked at Grian, and it was then did Grian realize what they were asking. Of course, Tango would have done it, but between the three of them, Grian technically has the strongest magic. So with a sigh, Grian kneeled down.

"G?" 

Grian ignored everyone's questioning stares and remarks, instead turning them into white noise as he closed his eyes and evened out his breathing. Both his hands pressed against the black grass, he clung onto the soil. He allowed himself to calm down, to prepare himself. 

His eyes then snapped open, purple flames flowing out. 

He could hear everyone's gasp of surprise but he didn't register it in his mind. Instead, he tried to differentiate the source of magic in the server. 

Grian saw Scar and Tango's magic energy around them, followed by Bdubs. He also sensed Stress' magic as well as Cub's, which was similar to Scar's. Cleo was somewhere in the mainland, but still he could feel her presence. He ignored all their magic signatures and focused on the ones in the black vines. 

They were in a dark shade of purple, and keeping that in mind, he quickly scanned through the server, as if he was a camera going through a timelapse. Everything was a blur, but the minute he noticed the same magic signature, he knew he found his target. 

Grian let out a large gasp, his eyes returning to normal and his arms failing to support him. He dropped onto the grass, feeling a sense of intense exhaustion going through his body. Scar was quick to fall on his side, the regeneration magic already thrumming through his veins as Scar used his magic. 

"I- You're a magic-user?!" Zedaph asked, incredulously. "How- Where did that come from?! Who else knew?"

"Besides Scar and I, it would be Xisuma and Cub," Tango answered his friend, giving Grian pats on the back. Grian felt light-headed, but he managed to lift his head up to the other hermits to give them a look of plea.

"I know you have questions, but can you leave them for another time? I rather not reveal my entire story about my magic, but I figured its best you guys at least knew about it."

TFC actually walked towards Grian and kneeled in front of him. He placed a rough hand on the hermit's shoulder and gave him a warm smile.

"It's all good, G-man. You'll tell us at your own time, we can wait." TFC helped Grian up to his feet by pulling his hand. As they let go, TFC's expression turned serious. "Alright, what's the plan now?" 

Grian looked towards the direction of where he sensed the magic energy. It was thousands upon thousands of blocks away and their nether hub would not be able to help them due to its location. 

"Anyone mind flying for long periods of time?" Grian asked the group, a smile forming on his face at the thought of bringing a team of hermits to a mission. It somehow made him feel giddy. The other hermits looked at each other, likely asking themselves which one of them would be following Grian on this trip. 

"I'll go," Tango said, placing a hand on Grian's shoulder and flashing him a toothy grin. Grian smiled back, and placed a hand on top of his and nodded. 

"I'm going."

"Doesn't sound too bad, I'm in." 

False and Jevin stepped forward. After a moment of pause, Python also joined the other two. 

"I haven't helped much last time due to the rain, but flying thousands of blocks to find a magic light? Doesn't sound too bad." 

So there were five of them in total, it should be enough.  
"Anything we can do?" Impulse asked Grian. The hermit hummed to himself, thinking, though it didn't take too long to form an answer. 

"Be prepared for anything. It's best if we leave as soon as we can to find this thing, the faster the better."

Everyone nodded, and some had left to either prepare for the journey or to go somewhere else. Scar was sending a message to the other hermits about the journey and Tango was talking to Impulse and Zedaph, both of which bore worried expressions about the journey. 

Left to his thoughts, it was startling how easy it was to become the leader. It was no surprise that Grian would be the type to be initiative, look at Tag, and the prank wars-turned Civil War. But actually standing in front of all of the hermits he only met a couple of months, taking the role as a leader? That's a surprise. 

Nonetheless, Grian too set off towards Hermitville to prepare, ignoring the lingering feeling of dread piling at the bottom of his gut.

* * *

"Well, that was... uh, new?" Cub said, slowly backing away from the sharp icicle that had formed just by his head, nearly impaling him. Iskall frowned for he too was also the victim of being nearly impaled by a sharp icicle. 

"I'm sorry! I- I don't know what happened." Stress apologized, trying to flap away the frost that formed on her fingers. "Uh, one moment!" 

The room that was covered in ice and spikes soon retracted to its source, returning it into its normal state. With the room being protected by a spell provided by Cub, nothing outside of the room was damaged. Couldn't say the same for the numerous pieces of desks and chairs on the floor. 

"That was actually pretty good! You're getting better every day." Iskall complimented with a smile, genuinely proud of Stress. His positivity wasn't reflected back on Stress, who simply shook her head no, stuffing her cold hands into the pockets of her pink jacket. 

"That was good?! I nearly impaled the both of ya on the head!" 

"True, but there was progress." Cub flicked his hand, a clipboard flying across the room before the scientist snatched it out of thin air. Iskall made a raspberry sound upon seeing magic taking place, feeling jealous that he was just a normal human with a cybernetic eye. 

Cub and Stress talked for a bit about her magic, seeing significant progress throughout the week they started on practicing. Iskall had been there to provide support whenever he can, and also to make sure Stress was kept safe. Truth be told, the first few days of training was terrifying. Stress had no control over her magic, so often Iskall would find a leg or two be submerged in ice. It would also take hours for Stress to retract the ice, but even that was difficult. 

Under the supervision of Cub and Scar, her magic really did improve. Scar and Cub were more surprised than amazed that Stress could get a hold of her magic so quickly and mentioned before that it was as if Stress just needed a little practice to recall numerous spells. A little practice, almost implying that Stress was just rusty and not entirely clueless on her ice magic. 

Stress looked exhausted by the time Cub was finished explaining. Iskall was already by her side, holding her steady. 

"Is it alright if we check your magic vitals before you rest?" Cub asked, recognizing the sign of exhaustion on her face. The question was directed at Stress, but Iskall saw Cub's eyes also falling on him as if requesting his permission as well. 

Iskall placed a hand on her back, rubbing it soothingly. "Would that be alright, Stress? It won't take too long." 

She nodded, but it didn't seem like she heard him properly. Iskall and Cub shared a worried expression and was quick to send her to her temporary room in Area 77. 

The room had long since been changed to make it more livable and less dreary to look at. In fact, last Saturday Grian and Ren had come over to Stress' room carrying all sorts of pillows, blankets and a bunch of other things for a sleepover with Iris in tow. Mumbo even came, and Iskall was glad that they indeed had that sleepover he talked about when Stress woke up. (Although Stress didn't actually remember due to her being asleep)

The evidence of their sleepover was still there, tucked into one corner due to sheer laziness. 

"Is it normal to feel this tired?" Stress frowned to herself as Iskall helped her onto the bed. "I haven't felt this tired in so long..."

"Magic fatigue, most likely," Cub answered, clipping a bracelet onto Stress' wrist, tightening it to fully wrap around her skin. "It's pretty common within magic users who excessively used their magic more than their body could handle at once. It often happens when you use a powerful spell, but using magic in long periods of time can also cause magic fatigue." 

As he pressed a small button on the bracelet, a nearby heart monitor began to beep. There was another screen beside the heart monitor, showing another signal that doesn't match the constant beat of Stress' heart. It was much more rapid and bigger than the heartbeat. Iskall would worry, but he had seen that screen too many times during the week it became normal for him now. 

"Still the same?" Stress questioned, sighing deeply when she recognized the look of uncertainty on Cub's face. 

Cub nodded, writing something down on the notepad. According to Scar and Cub, there is a thing called a 'magic heartbeat' which basically tells people about how much magic they have. Not necessarily about its power or strength, simply just the amount. Its heartbeat follows the normal heartbeat, which would be considered as the right amount of magic the player can have. It's not uncommon for the magic heartbeat to be slightly faster or slightly slower than the regular heartbeat. 

In fact, not many people knew about the magic heartbeat or forgot about it. It wasn't important simply because by default the magic-users will already have the correct amount of magic that their body could handle. Stress wasn't the case in so many ways. 

They still don't know where her magic came from (Iskall suspected it was the poisoning but he didn't have much evidence about that). Nothing could explain why Stress was still alive despite having too much magic that her body was not supposed to handle. It was strange and Cub was keeping a close eye on her if anything happens.

After what happened at the castle, he's not so willing to leave her side any time soon. 

Three communicators buzzed at the same time, prompting all three hermits to pull out their communicators. Apparently the black vines Bdubs found yesterday had stopped spreading at the moment, and that Grian found a possible clue about everything that's been happening. 

"At least they found something. I wonder what X and Doc are up to." Stress said to herself, leaning back on the pillow that was helping her sit up from the bed. "They've been gone for more than a week now." 

"It's quite normal, in X's case anyway. I believe where he's going, time is merely non-existent. It could be hours in Xisuma and Doc's side, but weeks in our world." Cub said. "He never explained what it was like, being there. But we trust that he's keeping himself safe. Doc is with him, too, so he's double safe."

There was a knock on the door that halted their conversation. Iskall, being the nearest, went to open the door and was pleasantly surprised to see Mumbo, Wels, and Iris at the other side. 

Iris ran up to Iskall to give him a quick hug around the belly, before running around him to run to Stress' bed. Iskall laughed to himself and let Mumbo and Wels in. "Hey, guys! Why didn't you tell us you were visiting?" 

"I may or may not have forgotten," Mumbo admitted. Iskall realized that his black jacket was unbuttoned and his tie was nowhere to be found. It was somehow a good look on him to be more casual than formal. 

Wels laughed from beside Mumbo, giving him a soft nudge with his elbow. "I was talking to Mumbo about Iris learning to fight if building and redstone end up not being her thing. It was a very heavy debate about how redstone is much better than PvP." Mumbo flushed and nudged Wels back. 

There was a small growl coming from behind Iskall, and to his surprise, it was from Iris. Turning around, he spotted Iris on the bed with Stress, holding her hand within her two small ones and glaring heavily at Cub. There was a look of warning on her eyes, telling Cub not to come closer. 

He had never seen Iris act so hostile towards any of the hermits, nonetheless Cub who Iskall knew barely interacted with Iris since her appearance. It was very unsettling to see Iris in this state despite being cute at the same time. 

"Whoa, is she okay?" Wels asked, walking closer to the bed. Iris showed no sign of aggression towards him, still keeping her steely grey eyes at Cub who had now formed a sad expression on his face. It must have hurt, trying your best to know someone only for them to be so unnecessarily hostile. Iskall didn't understand, though it looked like Cub knew what was going on. 

"I think she has a distaste towards Vex magic." Cub sighed, taking a step back. He tore his gaze away from the girl and started to work on some stuff on a nearby desk. "I wouldn't be surprised. She was rather agitated when Scar and I first met with her at the shopping district. She recognized Vex magic as something hostile, an enemy of her homeworld." 

Homeworld, something Iskall had forgotten about since leaving. He had never thought of coming back to his homeworld any time soon, didn't really plan to anyway. But he knew some hermits missed their homeworlds and took the effort to visit their relatives every couple of months. Wels, especially. 

Iris must have a homeworld, right? Homeworlds can't be deleted- though they can be forgotten and abandoned but never deleted. He wondered if Iris even remembered what her home was even like. 

"Hoo...mmmm....?" Iris asked, looking up at Stress in question. Stress understood what she was saying and smiled softly, tucking a strand of white hair behind the girl's ear. 

"Homeworld. Do you remember what your home was like?" Stress kindly asked. There was a hazy look on her eyes as she processed the question. The look that unintentionally made Iskall notice Mumbo tensing up. 

Eventually, she just shrugged, as if she did not know the answer to it. Then she pointed at Stress and gave her a questioning look.

"Are you asking what me homeworld was like?" 

Iris nodded. 

"Well, I wouldn't call it a 'home'. It was far from being a home, but it was where I spawned and grew up during me childhood. There was a lot of magic, mostly elemental magic like nature, fire, water, air... It was also rather beautiful. However, me family wasn't the kindest towards those without magic and excluded them from society. I was one of them, ironically. I left, went on me own for a couple of years, and eventually was invited by Iskall to join Hermitcraft. Thus, I found me home." Stress was giving Iskall a wide smile as she mentioned him, making Iskall laugh nervously at how hot his cheeks got. 

Iris was looking at him now.

"No, my homeworld was not- It's a bad place, a really, really, bad place," Iskall said slowly, trying to find the correct words. "I rather not talk about it. It's not a good home, either, despite the name. But it's fine, I found my home within the hermits here."

"As have I." Wels piped in, grinning. "My homeworld is something similar to Stress, but more on wizardry and less of elemental. Although I wasn't born with magic, I grew up wanting to become a knight. I then wanted adventure, and left." 

Everyone was looking at Mumbo now, who shrugged helplessly. "I... I don't even want to talk about it."

"Why not?"

"It's so boring! It's too normal and bland and nothing interesting ever happened!" 

"Is that why you left at fourteen to join a contest?"

"Yes- but that's not the point!" 

They laughed. Even Cub was chuckling from where he was, though he chose not to speak about his homeworld. As everyone was distracted with the happy moment, Iskall's eye fell on the magic heartbeat monitor. 

The speed had slowed, nearly matching with Stress' heartbeat. 

When Iskall looked at Stress, he noticed a very, very faint glow that connected Iris and Stress' hands together. But before he could say anything about it, the glow stopped and the magic heartbeat monitor went back to its original fast, rapid beats. Iskall blinked, processing the image in his mind but failed to wrap his head around it. Perhaps he should talk to someone about it, but maybe later. 

Iskall failed to notice the magic heartbeat monitor was actually slower than the initial beat minutes ago. He failed to notice Iris hands slipping away from Stress'. 

He failed to notice a smile forming in Iris' face. 

He failed to notice them all.

Cub didn't. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> managed to finish it up and oh boy are we getting somewhere   
> procrastination at its finest everyone  
> its like 1.18 am here lmao send help


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this has been sitting in my drafts for so long i  
> hope u enjoy it. lowkey not my greates work because i was doing this half-asleep and w out much inspiration  
> i think i'll edit this in a later future but alas school still exists and i am s t r u gg l ing

Doc nearly spilled the cup that was somehow gripped tightly with his fingers. Looking around frantically, he saw Xisuma and the stranger carrying their own cups although they seemed calm, most likely from the number of times they have done this in the past.

Three were in a circular space surrounded by aisles of bookcases that reached way above the ceiling. So high up, Doc can barely see anything due to the darkness. There wasn't much light around, only a couple of purple torches that were hung at the pillars and at the side of the bookcases. The floor was made of wood, but on the center of the space was a stone floor, carved into the same symbol as the one the stranger has on his lapel. To his surprise, the symbol softly glowed purple. 

"Where are we?" Doc wearily asked, finding the long aisles of books a bit too much. "Are we in a library?" 

"Somewhat," Xisuma replied, twirling the contents of his cup around. The stranger smiled at Doc, taking another sip with a big grin on his face. 

"Welcome to the Archives."

"The... what?" 

"This place is full of stories! From every server to every player, even NPCs and those the players have created... Every story is stored in the Archives to be protected. Every life in this universe has a story to tell, and it is my duty to overlook those stories to ensure they continue each chapter." 

Doc blinked at the stranger's words and turned to Xisuma. "So he knows about what's happening to everyone?" 

"Not necessarily," Xisuma answered, placing his cup on a floating book that passed by for some odd reason. "Se- his job is simply to look after these... stories. Every event that happened in your life or in a server, it will be accounted for, no matter what. He has no control over what is written, only to ensure they continue until they reach the final chapter, whether it ends in a happy or brutal ending."

The stranger nodded along to Xisuma's explanation. "That is indeed correct, Xisuma. Everyone has a story to tell in the universe. These stories are basically life itself, my dear Doc! They need to be cherished and looked after well. They need to reach their final chapters." 

They were walking towards one of the aisles. Doc was powerless in this situation and followed both Xisuma and the stranger. He felt claustrophobic in a somewhat tight space. It didn't help there wasn't much light except for the occasional glow of the enchanted books on the bookcases. Every second a book will fly out, flip rapidly, before going to another bookcase. It continued like that for a while. 

"So... Xisuma and I have our own books about life?" Doc asked, finding the cup of coffee unappealing. A book suddenly flew down by his side and hovered there for a moment. Doc hesitantly placed the cup on the book and watched as it flew away. "Even the Hermitcraft server?"

"Yes to both, Doc! Wow, you are rather intelligent." The stranger smiled at him. He could see the genuine look, but Doc couldn't help but still feel uneasy. Everything about this was weird- weirder than the Edge. Perhaps this was what Xisuma said when he warned him about not being what he knew about the Universe.

"I feel like you would know that, if you read my book." Doc shot back, not meaning to make it sound annoying. The stranger only laughed. 

"I do admit I read a few pages. Your birth was rather intriguing, Docm77. There was nothing like your case when D̵̰̩̓0̶̠̄̓ͅc̸̱̐ṫ̶̙0̶̟̖̄͑0̶͚̘̊͑R̷̮͇̄R̵̡̩̓͝ ̸̦̈́ṃ̷̏0̶̦̈́̎R̵̨̐g̴͕̔4̸̄ͅN̸̛̹̣̏'s love for 5̴̼͠Ȗ̵͎b̷̦̎̕j̸̥̜͒͂3̵͓̬́̈C̴̖̔͜͠T̴͎̕̚ ̵̰̽͘7̶̞̕7̴̻̺̈́͘ was enough to spawn a whole new player." 

Doc blinked, the names not registering in his mind. It was static and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to process the names that left his mouth. It annoyed him because he knew who those names were, but for some reason, his brain is not letting him know them. Neither Xisuma nor the stranger (god, it was starting to get annoying, calling him that) noticed his disturbance. 

"Xisuma is also another case of becoming a player under different circumstances-"

"Actually, you don't have to explain it. I already told him." Xisuma interrupted the stranger, who nodded politely. 

"Right, of course."

They were silent for a while, just walking. 

"So, uh, who the fuck are you?"

"Language!" Xisuma hissed, glaring at Doc. Doc glared back.

"Sorry, whom the fuck are you?"

The stranger laughed, taking a sip on his cup. "Don't worry, Xisuma. I'm not like Ty who wished to remain his name unknown to outsiders. My name is SetoSorcerer, but it would be nice if you call me Seto."

Alright, cool, the stranger has a name now. It somehow sounds familiar, though he was not sure why. 

Xisuma looked surprise at the reveal, but calmed down immediately afterward. "Seto, you have read what was happening in my server, right?"

"I have, yes. There was a strange magical energy coming from your book, so I checked."

Xisuma and Doc remained silent. Seto gave them a confused look.

"What? Do you expect me to tell you there was a problem in your chapters? There wasn't a mistake in the words written there-"

"But Iris wasn't meant to be in our server..." Doc pointed out, despite it stinging his heart. "She wasn't supposed to be part of our story-"

"Ah, that's where you're wrong, my friend." Seto interrupted, putting a finger up to silence them both. "There are no mistakes in these writings, merely just happy accidents that stumbled upon a page. These accidents may destroy the plot, or help to advance them. No matter the case, the child that arrived in your server was no mistake. Rather... a very accidental cross-over."

"Cross-over?" Doc repeated the word. "What does that mean?"

"It means the story in the world the child resided in has crossed over to the story of your server. Two different stories, now linked over each other."

Xisuma's expression was one of worry and confusion. "I believe I do not understand what you're saying, Seto. Iris' story crossed over ours?"

"No, not the child's. Her world crossed over to yours. The child is merely just a character in that story, bringing the plot of her world towards yours."

The explanation did nothing to help Doc understand any of what was happening. 

Seto frowned when he noticed the looks of confusion on both Xisuma and Doc's faces, and sighed deeply. "It would be better if I show you how it all started." 

His hand shot up towards the air, and a nearby book flew out from the bookcase and into his hand, somehow sending a gust of wind towards Xisuma and Doc from the impact. Seto rapidly turned the pages, his eyes closed, then stopped. 

Purple flames formed from his eyes, and Seto's hands were surrounded by a bright white light. 

"Right from the very beginning."

Everything went white.

* * *

_Once upon a time, there were two brothers who ruled alongside each other in their world. Their peasants and wealthy citizens looked up to the brothers because in their world, they are gods._

Doc found himself in stark white. In front of him were silhouettes of people with wings doing various activities like farming and building. He heard a hum of magic behind him and turned to look at two huge figures. They were also silhouettes, but they were a different color compared to the others. One was in a bright shade of gold and the other was in a deep shade of purple. 

_The older brother, Xonne, was the God of Life. He gave his people the sun, nature, animals and even rain. He brought life to the world and excelled in it. The younger brother, Xeere, was the God of Death. He brings people of old age and the sick to the other side, giving them eternal peace from their suffering. He also created monsters during the night, giving his people a challenge to overcome._

As Seto's voice echoed in his mind, the white setting changed into one of a village surrounded by trees. It bore similarities of the usual villages he found in his world, but it was undeniably different. There were also farms with peasants tending to them and iron golems protecting them. There was a vision of rain, and he spotted a father teaching his son how to feed a cow some wheat. When Xeere was mentioned (it sounded like Void), the sun dramatically changed to nighttime. He spotted zombies coming out from the ground, wearing armor and diamond swords. The iron golems, while strong, were no match to the horde. The peasants used what they have to fight alongside their protectors. Much to Doc's surprise, they were able to defeat them and collect their loot. 

_Together, the two brothers gave balance to their world. An equal amount of life, and an equal amount of death. Everyone was content with their lives. For years, their world was living in total bliss. Until one day, one of the brothers became dissatisfied._

The setting changed to show the brother- _Xonne_ , sitting down on a throne, his head leaning on his hands. He looked to be dissatisfied, if his posture was anything to come by. There was nothing else around him but darkness, which gave the brother a soft golden glow. Doc guessed this was gonna become an irony. 

_As years went by, the older brother became annoyed at the constant death his sibling was causing, especially when a plague that was caused by him began. He wanted to give life to his precious world, but it was useless if his brother kept on destroying what was meant to live. He became discontent with their ways, and eventually, he wanted more. He wanted to spare his people of the devastation death will cause. He wanted to protect them from his brother._

Two, much larger figures suddenly towered behind Xonne. They were purple like Xeere, but it was pretty clear they were different from the brothers. Both seemed to be wearing a huge cloak that covered their tall figures and there was a white mask on both their faces. The symbol Seto has on his lapel printed on those masks. 

_As if his call was heeded, two beings suddenly arrived to his world. They promised him the power to keep death at bay, promised him of whatever he wished. Xonne was unbewildered by their sudden appearances, but rather quickly accepted their offer. And just like that, everything changed for the worse._

The setting changed, and Doc watched, horrified as the same village he was in moments ago was overgrown by plants and trees. There were many elderly, most of whom can't even seem to walk properly. 

_The beings taught Xonne everything. They showed him how to use what was called an 'admin panel', of which they allowed him to gain access to. He explored, he exploited and most of all, he took advantage of this new power that allowed him to control his world. But he wanted more than that. He didn't want power to control life, he simply wanted power._

The village was gone. Doc was seeing various snippets of what happened. Many adults were killed by monsters, children were forced underground, their legs chained to the wall. To his horror, he also saw silhouettes of people getting their wings pulled out from their bodies, red lines running down their back to mimic blood. There was a brief flash where a child had their wings torn out, and the screams they produced sounded a lot like Iris'. He wanted to help the child- he wanted to stop it, but a figure of deep purple suddenly blocked his path. 

_The younger brother was furious. No, he was boiling with rage. How dare he break their promise of keeping balance?! In a fit of anger, Xeere was using his power to kill and torture every single living thing in sight. Plants, animals, people, everything that was created by his own brother. He didn't care that he, too, was destroying their promise, but it was Xonne's fault, was it? He started this._

The two tall figures appeared behind Xeere's back. Doc took a step back, intimidated. It was as if they were looking at him now. 

_Much like the older brother, the beings have offered Xeere power to defeat his brother. But unlike Xonne who accepted the offer, Xeere was hesitant, but he accepted anyway because he was desperate to fight. So he gained the power of an admin, and thus began the war that lasted for months._

The three figures disappeared and came to a literal war field between destruction and... there was nothing that showed life, only death and misery. Monsters and humans fought and neither of them seemed to be winning. From one side, the golden figure of Xonne overlooked his side of the battlefield. On the other was Xeere, seething at his brother. The war field then collapsed, until it only showed Xonne pacing back and forth in picture frames. 

_Xonne became desperate. He wanted to defeat his brother, but their powers were equal to one another. Any more magic then he'll die. He needed a solution, he needed something. Amidst the war, there were humans that had their wings torn out by Xeere. Those humans managed to escape the wrath of death and with Xonne's assistance, they were able to break out a couple more. Then, he had an idea._

A small figure appeared behind Doc, who whirled around and nearly collapsed on his knees when he recognized the figure. Despite it being a silhouette, it was no doubt that this girl was Iris, who was in a shade of white that contrasted the darkness around her. Pure and bright, he thought. 

_It was impossible for Xonne to change his own coding- he didn't know how typical. But he could change the coding of others. In secret, he experimented with his people, one by one. They weren't truly mortal by any means, so it was easy to allow them to... contain magic but not being able to use them. A vessel, so to speak. However, none of the humans were able to contain large amounts of magic in their bodies before dying. Every failed attempt only stirred him to continue, until finally, he found the perfect vessel._

The Iris silhouette changed. Before it was just white, but now the inside was hollowed out as if any essence of life was stripped from her and left with just the shape. The sight made Doc sick and rage. 

_Despite the vessel's young body, she was able to hold large quantities of magic without any repercussions. Even better, she is able to direct the magic to something else and even change the type of magic she was currently holding. It was a masterpiece, and she was gonna be Xonne's secret weapon in defeating his brother. The plan was, Xonne will direct his own powerful magic to the vessel, causing her to contain more magic than Xonne could ever, and she would direct that power to Xeere. It was a flawless plan that would bring him victory. Now, if only he didn't underestimate Xeere's intelligence._

Xonne disappeared, and on his place was Xeere.

_Xeere knew there was something his brother was creating, but never did he realize it was this. He felt sick when his loyal monsters retrieved the child from the humans, bare of anything but to be a vessel. She looked dead. His brother was meant to be the God of Life, not someone who messed with his own creations. Oh, poor child... what he did was horrendous. Xeere tried to backtrack what his brother had coded, but whatever it was coded, he was unable to decipher. That was when he realized something terrible._

The scene changed, and Doc watched as both brothers filled either side of his view, with Iris right in the middle. The two fall figures stood behind her, and he saw a white smile on their faces. 

_The beings that gave them this power was manipulating them. They took advantage of Xonne's dissatisfaction and Xeere's anger, making them fight each other. Balance is broken because they were manipulated by those not from their world. Xeere did not understand how 'admin' worked but knew he can't let his brother use a child as his weapon. He did not have the heart to kill the child. Even if her purpose was to be a vessel, Xeere somehow believed that she is something more. So with his power, he sent the child far away from the world, through the universe and someplace where she can be safe._

Suddenly, they were in their server, and Doc watched as a silhouette of him, Grian and Ren looked over at the silhouette of Iris. 

_Xonne was outraged. In his state of mind, the child was the perfect vessel for him. He was not willing to create another, too prideful of his work to do so. He was delusional. He was lost. He will not stop._

* * *

They were back in the aisles of books. Xisuma looked furious, his hands clenched into tight fists at either side of him. Doc felt the same, but he was more hurt than anything that Iris' world was in a state of constant war that she was a victim of. It's more disheartening to realize that so many people died at the hands of Xonne, and Iris was chosen to be a vessel. He did not know if Iris getting killed in the process would have been a better fate for her.

"Ty said that Iris will be in danger." Xisuma lowly said. "Is this what he meant? Xonne will stop at nothing to get Iris to be his... his vessel?" 

Seto had both his hands behind his back, a neutral expression on his face as he processed the emotional turmoils on both the hermits. He sighed, frowning slightly. "As much as I hate to say it, yes. Xonne went mad, wanting more but losing his sense of direction at the process. He became obsessed with the vessel, knowing she will be the key to defeating his brother. Ironically, Xeere was the one who decided to give the child a chance and sent her away, most specifically to your world. It is fortunate that Xonne's lack of admin training made his coding much more... weak, so to speak. The child was bare of any signs of life in her old world, but when she arrived to yours, some of her codings got shifted back, giving her emotions and thoughts. Giving her what was once taken from her, life."

"But she will still be a vessel, won't she?"

Seto solemnly nodded. "I'm afraid some things were permanently changed."

Doc grumbled some swear words under his breath. "Well, Xonne and Xeere were NPCs, were they? How can they have access to admin panels?"

"Better question, how are they able to transport NPCs across the universe?" Xisuma added. "The story is devastating to hear but it did make us understand why Iris is so naive and innocent despite being eight. What I don't understand is how are they able to do it? NPCs can't access these panels, only Players could. It doesn't make sense."

Seto was giving Xisuma a strange look. "... Why are you asking so many questions?"

The fact Seto looked unbothered annoyed Doc. Based on Xisuma's sour expression, he was feeling the same way. Yes, it was good that they understood Iris' origins more and how she lost her wings and became who she is, but it didn't explain how she got to their server under unnatural means. She literally came out of nowhere. 

"Seto, if you can't tell me how Iris got to our world, then answer me this," Doc said, his voice deep and intimidating. "Who were those beings and why do they have the same symbol as you?" 

They were suddenly surrounded by pin-drop silence. There used to be a flutter of pages or a wisp of magic in the air, but it was dead silent. A dark shadow cast over Seto's features. The symbol on his lapel glowed ever so slightly, and his gloved reached up to trace the carved drawing. 

"... Are you familiar with the term, 'Watchers?'." 

They were no longer between the aisles of bookcases. They were now in total darkness, but strangely enough, Doc can still see both Xisuma and Seto clearly without any form of an external light source. There must have been a night vision potion in that coffee or something. 

The name didn't ring any bells to Doc, but Xisuma looked uncomfortable at the mention of that. "... A powerful being that exists within our universe. Neither truly a Player nor an NPC. An anomaly, if you so choose to name them." 

Anomalies are now involved? Jesus fucking christ, Xisuma, just what kind of shit do you know about the dang universe? 

"Yes. They only have one purpose, to watch over our worlds." Seto swirled his hand around, forming purple particles that makes up miniature shapes of the two beings he saw in his visions. "To look after them. Give them... assistance, if they ever need it. There are millions of Watchers in the world, but there were two particular Watchers that took an interest in their players. They decided... They want to provide more than just wise words and gifts from the sky. They want to help players who ultimately needed them." 

He snapped, and two figures appeared by the Watchers, human-sized. 

"The first two players they happen to found believed they were betrayed by their friends. The Watchers offered them a way out, and they took it without a second thought." There was a hint of grim in Seto's voice. It didn't take too long for Doc to realize that these two figures were Ty and Seto. The first two players to be given a powerful gift by the Watchers. 

"Their names were Xox and Xorcer. Even though they kept up with their duties as part of the watchers, it was clear they have no intention of being by their side. So they were sent off on their way to do whatever they wished. The Watchers never saw them for decades." 

He swirled his hand again, causing the figures to disappear only to replace with another pair. 

"Another pair was found. They both needed something different in their lives, something that can lift their spirits. A change of pace, a new adventure, one of which. The Watchers gave them that offer, and soon came Xauras and Xelqua."

Seto paused, eyeing their reactions. Both Xisuma and Doc were left clueless. They never heard of the names before. This made him sigh. 

"One day, Xaurus disappeared without a trace. No note, no evidence of wanting to leave, nothing. Just disappeared off the face of the universe. Xelqua was left heartbroken, but he was committed to his work. As time went on, he grew a distaste for the Watchers and their ways, turning that distaste into hate. The Watchers, too knew this, but in a fit of anger due to one of Xelqua's mischievous pranks, they burnt down the server Xelqua was part of, along with many others as punishment." 

Doc's breath hitched, realizing just how awful it must have been for Xelqua to experience that. Then he imagined what it would be like if it happened to the Hermitcraft server. He was already feeling nauseous at the idea. 

"Xelque was devastated. He then decided to leave, hiding away, putting a facade of a normal Player when in reality he was a much more powerful being. The Watchers were... very unhappy with Xelqua's actions and decided to... put themselves into other peoples' worlds." 

Then there were multiple visions of worlds formed around the empty space. Many of which was the Players interacting with the Watchers, others were the Players doing what the Watchers told them to do. Majority were the worlds falling into their destruction.

The sight caused Xisuma to gasp. "But- But that's against their purpose!" 

"Mhm."

"Even though they're neither Players nor NPCs they shouldn't be interfering with the worlds of other people."

"Yep."

The short answers annoyed Doc. "Why the hell are you so calm about this?" 

Seto looked unamused at the question. In fact, he was mirroring Doc's expression and was directing it towards Xisuma himself. He ignored the hybrid completely, instead walking up to Xisuma. The blackness surrounding them began to flicker, and Doc watched with wide eyes as the spell was broken and they returned to the bookcases. But he noticed that the books that were flying out were stuck in mid-air. It was still deadly silent. 

"Xisuma, you are such an intelligent person. It's a given, Voidkinds are often intelligent." Seto began, his posture casual but on his face was one of judgemental and curiosity. It was strange. "But what I wonder is... why is it difficult for you to understand that sometimes there are things that can't be explained?"

Xisuma was about to reply with something snarky, likely, but Seto put his hand up, successfully making him silent. 

"Your greatest weakness is the lack of knowing what is happening. When you don't know about something, you would always try to figure it out. You make sense when there are rules and laws apply, but become clueless, lost, and afraid when something out of your control happens. That is what happened with your server and the child, wasn't it? It has never happened to you before, so you didn't know how to react. Your utmost priority has always been to care for your hermits."

Doc stood by Xisuma, placing his hand on his shoulder. Xisuma looked at him with glassy eyes before turning back to Seto. 

"But that's the thing, Xisuma. Sometimes there are just certain things the universe won't explain. No motive, no reason, except for the fact that the universe can. The Watchers, whose purpose is to keep an eye on the servers, interfered with their events due to their anger towards Xelqua. They weren't supposed to do that, but the universe allowed them to. Xeere opened a rift to your server that allowed him to transport the child and parts of his magic. Again, not supposed to happen, but do you know why it happened? Because the universe lets it."

Doc unconsciously placed a hand on his chest, where his heart would be. Seto noticed the small action and gave him a soft look. 

"Why do you think Doc was spawned? Why do you think you became a Player? It was because of the universe. There doesn't need to be a reason for certain events to happen, because, at the end of the day, the universe isn't something that is in your control. The universe doesn't have to tell you the reason for the things they do."

Suddenly, Joe's voice rang in the back of his head. He didn't think it through until he said it out loud. 

"The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you. In the end, it is up to us to make sense of the universe..." 

Seto looked at Doc, surprised that he heard Doc actually say something rather intelligent for once. "Yea, something like that." He turned to Xisuma, who still looked disturbed and unsure, and placed a gloved hand on his shoulder. It forced Xisuma to look up at his friend in mild surprise. 

"You can question the universe and their motives all you want, but sometimes its best to just let the universe be. Things change all the time, whether it be for the good or bad." 

Doc pondered over that statement. Things do change, but it wasn't like this. Redstone contraptions change, magic also changes, sometimes he loses but gains friends. Sometimes the thing you thought would last, doesn't, but you get something new out of it. It has happened to many people, it will definitely happen to a hundred more. 

But does change ever happen like this? A child- An NPC, crashing into your server when they weren't supposed to, and in three days decided to care for one despite lacking parental skills in the first place? Doc never imagined he would end up being a parent, nonetheless be so willing. He supposed he should blame the human part of him, whoever he was, for that. 

Xisuma exhaled, eyes clenched shut. He was trying to believe what Seto was saying, and whether or not he was succeeding, Doc can't tell. 

Doc frowned to himself, crossing his arms as he remembered what Seto told them minutes ago, about the story of how those beings- the Watchers, arrived to Iris' world and manipulated the brothers. 

Honestly, he still doesn't understand how the Watchers came to be and what their purpose was, but he was more interested about the players that were 'saved'. It didn't take too long to put together that both Ty and Seto were the first two players to be 'saved' by the Watchers. With their purple cloaks and lapels (though Seto was the one that visibly showed his), it made sense why they are able to survive in the Edge. 

What he doesn't get are Xelqua and Xaurus. Something was off about that particular pair. 

"You said Xaurus disappeared and Xelqua became hateful towards the Watchers. Why does it take Xelqua leaving for the Watchers to go mad and invade other worlds but not Xaurus?"

Seto didn't reply for a moment but summoned a book out from their bookshelf. He brought the book towards them and let his magic flip through the pages. Doc and Xisuma stood nearby as it stopped on the page where they showed an illustration of two Watchers, with a smaller human figure at the center. It looked like a portrait of some kind. The Watchers' features were unidentifiable except for their hair and crowns. The human, on the other hand, had sandy blonde hair. There was a purple halo around his head but that was pretty much it. With the mask and cloak, there was barely anything Doc could see about the human. 

"After Xaurus' disappearance, the Watchers were just as devastated as Xelqua." Seto softly explained. "They didn't want to lose Xelqua for they considered him as their son, like what Xaurus was to them. So they did what they could to keep him happy and alive, but they were only successful in one part of it. Destroying his world as punishment over something small was their greatest mistake. Xelqua was... angry towards them. When he disappeared, the Watchers were angry but most of all, they were heartbroken at losing both their children. In a fit of rage and devastation, they destroy other worlds, make them suffer." 

Doc trailed his finger on the portrait drawing, feeling sympathetic and conflicted. What the Watchers have done was not excusable, but he can't entirely blame them. If Iris was suddenly gone he too would probably invade other worlds and make them suffer.

"Of course, the Watchers themselves are manipulative and somewhat delusional, but their love towards Xelqua and Xaurus was there. They were never entirely evil, but they weren't good, either. And, well, combine all that blinded with their love for Xelqua... yea." 

He couldn't help but wonder if the Watchers ever saw Seto and Ty as their own kids. 

"So... Who's the one we are blaming for? The Watchers or Xelqua?" It was supposed to be sarcastic, but Xisuma and Seto actually took this question into their consideration. 

"Neither, but I would say Xelqua leaving is the trigger." Xisuma stated, frowning. "That would mean he, and the watchers, are still out there existing."

"And by that logic, so is Xeere and Xonne." 

As soon as those words left his mouth, the ground began to shake. It wasn't violent, but the fact that the ground was even shaking left all three of them in a state of shock. They stayed grounded for a moment or two until it stopped, leaving them in silence once more. 

"... Was that supposed to happen?" Doc cautiously asked, still keeping both feet on the ground in case of another quake. But Seto didn't reply, instead the color in his already pale face drained, his eyes shrunk into small pupils as fear took over. 

Quickly, he began running down the hall.

"Oh for fu- Seto! Come back!" Xisuma exclaimed, already running after him. Doc followed. 

Seto didn't go that far, but he did turn a corner. Which surprised Doc, because he was sure they were in a very, very long pathway with bookcases at either side. He supposed with so trillions of stories, it would be tedious to walk around so there was some kind of magic that let them teleport or-

Why is he talking about magic? He's a doctor, for goodness sake. 

Seto had picked up a book and was frantically flipping through it using magic. With how normal-sized the book was, Doc had expected S eto to quickly find the page but he was continuously flipping as if it was infinite. It would make sense, considering how many events could happen in a single server.

"Is that our server?" Xisuma asked, looking over Seto's shoulder. Doc was doing the same on the other side. Even though he couldn't see the words due to the rapid speed of flipping, he was seeing visions of different events that had happened throughout their Season 6. The tag game, finding out Grian messed with his bush, the civil war... It was a book about their Hermitcraft server.

He only saw Season 6 events, so perhaps the other seasons were in different books. Kind of like different volumes of a book, which again makes sense. 

The pages finally stopped flipping until they reached a semi-incomplete page. Much to Doc's displeasure, the words that were slowly being filled up were in galactic. 

"You have got to be- what does it say?"

"It's changing," Xisuma noted out loud. Sure enough, the galactic words... sentences?... Whatever it was, they kept on changing shapes as more of the strange language began to pop up on the page.

However, Doc also noticed dark streaks streaming into the pages very slowly. Based on Seto's reaction, that was not normal.

"Something is interfering with your story. I- It has to be Xeere's magic that got into your server when the child first arrived but..." Seto trailed off, thinking to himself. "It first appeared in an earlier chapter, but those streaks never touched the words. It was just there, intact and lifeless. But now _these_ streaks- Xeere's magic is active and is getting closer."

As more galactic words pop up on the page, the black streaks were getting closer. However, he noticed the black streaks were never touching the words themselves. It was like it was avoiding the words, searching for something else. 

"Does this book see the future or something?" Doc asked.

Xisuma slowly nodded. "Sort of... But not far. Only minutes or hours into the future. These words rapidly change because every action and decision changes the fate of the future. But what we're seeing here is the black streak interfering in the pages. An outside source from our story, integrating itself into the book visually."

When one page was now full and getting into the next, Doc's head was aching. All of those words kept on changing into its different alphabet! It was nothing Seto and Xisuma could understand as the book doesn't let them read. However, only one word managed to be complete in a mess of rapid galactic letters.

The black streak plunged through that word as if striking it to its death. 

Seto and Xisuma were silent. 

"Guys?" 

There weren't any more words formed, but the numerous alphabets were still changing at a rapid pace, slowly but surely forming eventual sentences but still too slow enough to make any sense of it. The words and sentences had made space for the black streak to go to, and only that particular word was touched by that black streak. 

"No..." Xisuma stepped back, almost passing out if it weren't for Doc who had managed to reach him in time to keep him stable. "There has to be a way-"

"I'm afraid the book has already sealed her fate." Seto softly said, still staring at the pages with wide, horrified eyes. 

Doc looked between the two of them, confused, scared, and not knowing what was happening at all. What did that word say? What does it mean when that black streak of whatever crossed over that word?

Seto had finally looked up from the pages and gave Doc a sympathetic look. He did not understand why, but when he did, his heart dropped and his lips quivered as Seto slowly explained the horrific fate of his kid. 

"Iris is fated to die by the hands of Xeere and there is nothing we can do to change it." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> anyway i know some parts seem pretty confusing so if you want feel free to ask questions about anything and i'll elaborate it in the best way i can  
> yea i uh ive been tired but i feel bad letting this sit in the drafts for over a week soo


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what is this? me actually having time to write a chapter and pOstiNG it???  
> To be fair i had to rewrite the first part about three times. it was difficult lol  
> heads up, lots of dialogue

An hour passed. 

The sun will be setting soon.

Various hermits were out and about doing their own activities to lessen their worries and hope to pass the time. New Hermitville was somehow more populated than the original Hermitville but no one really minds. Or cared, for that matter. 

Zedaph and Impulse quietly talked to one another, sharing ideas for new ridiculous redstone contraptions but mostly sharing about their worries for Tango and the others. Bdubs kept his eyes on the clock and the sky, shifting between the two every few minutes with his fingers itching to reach for his bed (despite knowing the night can't be skipped). Keralis stood near Bdubs, worry on his face but most of all, he wondered where his dear Shishwammy void was. Ren, having been occupied with his own projects at the time Grian left, stood on the grassy field a few blocks away from New Hermitville, his arms crossed and staring over the horizon. 

Near the cave where the black vines were currently intact, Scar prodded the strange plant, deep in thought as he studied the magic despite knowing it was futile. It was at this time that Cleo had finally joined him and helped to figure out the origins of this plant but to no avail. TFC stood nearby, acting as their guard but really he was worried about leaving the two alone with the vines. 

In Area 77, Stress was chatting idly with Iris. Seeing this as an opportunity for them to have a 'Girl moment', whatever that meant, the male hermits retreated to the common room. 

The silence between them was heavy and awkward. None of them seemed too keen on starting a conversation, their minds filled with thoughts of various things that somehow relate to the same subject; Iris. 

Joe had come after a while and had promptly passed out the minute he laid down on the couch. Wels felt bad for the man and placed a pillow under his head. Mumbo helped to lay a purple blanket over his body, silently telling himself to talk to him later. 

Again, they were silent.

Cub was by the kitchen area, brewing coffee of which its rich smell had dispersed through the room. Mumbo was pacing back and forth, looking nervously between the floor, Joe, his shoes, and occasionally adjusting his tie or fiddling with his fingers. Iskall unconsciously played with his butterfly knife expertly, his expression stoic. 

Wels looked between the three hermits and one sleeping poet, his mind racing and his body itching to do something. Finally, he could not take the silence anymore. 

"GUYS!" 

Mumbo screeched, Cub spilled his coffee, Iskall accidentally cut himself and Joe fell off the couch. 

"What was that for?!" Mumbo screeched, though whether he was angry or not Wels can't tell. If anything he looked like he was being a pouty kid with his straightened posture, clenched fists at either side of him, and a very displeased look on his face for being shocked. 

"Well, I sense this tension in the air and I don't like it." 

Cub stared at his coffee stained lab coat with a frown. Taking off his coat, he replied with, "Could've just, you know, not scream?" and placed it on the counter, leaving him with his button-up shirt. He rolled the sleeves up and walked over to check on Joe, who was now helped up by Wels. 

"That is one heck of a wake-up call if I do say so myself, Wels," Joe said, standing up straight. He looked exhausted but still functioning enough to focus on the others. "Though I do agree with Wels. Even asleep I could sense just how tense everyone is. Mind sharing with us your thoughts, Mr. 85?"

When the attention was directed to Iskall, he simply shrugged. "I'm just worried about Stress. That's all."

"We all are." Wels retorted. Nobody else added on to the topic before Joe changed the attention to Mumbo. 

"... I can't really, uh, avoid this can I?" Mumbo nervously asked, a strain smile on his face. 

"No, I suppose not. But if you don't want to share, that's fine, too." Joe said, giving his friend a small but reassuring smile. "With the... black vines, was it? It is making everyone more stressed than usual. It's best if we all share our thoughts to keep ourselves sane but of course, it's not compulsory." 

Wels couldn't help but wonder if Mumbo was... perhaps worried about Iris. He noticed his behavior when they left Grian's base earlier, took note of his confusion and concern that was obviously directed towards Iris. He hasn't been here when Iris was most active, so he wasn't sure if Iris' behavior was supposed to be different or not. 

Cub sighed, making everyone turn to him. "If I share you all with my thoughts, you'll think I'm crazy."

"Pretty sure it comes with the 'Mad Scientist' title, Cubby." Joe laughed softly.

Everyone was grinning now that the tension seemed to dissipate just slightly before it turned into one of seriousness as their attention focused on Cub. The hermit looked deep in thought. 

"Iris has some kind of effect on Stress' magic." 

Before anyone (and by anyone, it's really just Iskall) could say anything, Cub continued quickly. 

"It's obvious at this point, yes, that Stress' magic likely sprouted from Iris but that's not the point I was trying to make- not entirely, anyway. The point is that I saw Iris having some kind of effect on Stress' magic levels. Ignoring all laws of magical rules, I believe Iris has some kind of ability to take other people's magic." 

Everyone was silent. Cub's expression went from determined to now worried as the air between them remained quiet for a long period of time. It wasn't as if any of them didn't believe Cub, because believe it or not, all of them actually thought it was plausible to a certain degree. Heck, Wels hasn't even known Iris for that long, and yet he could believe she has some kind of power like that.

"H-How? And why?" Mumbo eventually asked, his voice cracking due to nervousness. "I mean, I know Iris can see magic but... is that even possible?"

"It isn't," Wels replied, frowning deeply. "Because based on what everyone knows, magic users can see magic energy if they used a spell. Furthermore, the magic energy is more on colors, correct? Iris seeing magic is passive, and she can see visuals. Scar mentioned it in the messages, remember?" 

They did. Whatever Grian had told them, Scar had relayed to everyone else. Every single thing. Whether or not Grian was actually comfortable to tell the rest he actually has magic powers was left in the air for now. Though, Wels silently wondered if Scar was supposed to reveal that Iris seeing magic energy via visual shapes was not normal. 

"I can't believe even after all this time, we still think everything about this is normal when it isn't." Iskall dryly laughed, likely due to absurdity of it all. "Heck, coming from your mouth it doesn't sound that crazy. But how did you get the idea of Iris being able to take magic?"

"The magic vitals. For reference to the others who don't know, magic vitals or 'magic heartbeats' are basically used to determine the amount of magic one person holds. It's often the same beat as the heart, which indicates it being normal. The faster the pulse, the more magic that person is holding. Stress' magic vitals are way beyond normal despite the fact that she seemed fine and functioning. Anyway, as everyone was distracted, I noticed Iris holding onto Stress' hands. I thought it was some kind of... I don't know, affectionate gesture?" 

Wels caught Iskall's shift of expression, one of surprise as if he had connected the dots. Cub noticed, and continued. 

"I don't know how, and I don't know why, but Iris somehow has some kind of magic in her that allowed her to form a god dang aura around their hands." 

Mumbo and Iskall looked confused at his wording. 

"You know how magic is often seen in colors?" Joe questioned the two of them, not giving them time to answer before continuing. "When doing spells, it lets off its own magical aura or, uh, glow. The color of it usually corresponds to their magic energy. For example, Cub and Scar's magic energy is in the shade of grey-blue due to the fact their magic came from vexes. It's practically impossible for a magic-user to do magic without showing off some kind of magical aura."

"So... Iris was doing some kind of magic, then." Mumbo mumbled. 

"Yea, but not directly, I don't think..." Cub was mumbling to himself afterward, his eyes lost and gazed somewhere at the side of the room. The rest of them looked at each other, confused but not at all weirded out. Cub tends to do this when he suddenly formed a theory. 

"Okay, hear me out." 

"We're listening," Joe replied. 

"Remember when I said Stress' magic is related to Iris? What if the reason for Stress being able to do magic was because of the source? Let's say the poisoning. It came from Iris' homeworld, or the likes of it. It causes Stress' codes to shift to allow her to do magic- don't really know how, we got to work on that part later on. But, the source remained the same. It did not change, nor did it go away. It remained in Stress' codings. Until Iris somehow created a link between her and Stress, allowing the source to flow through and go into Iris' coding."

"Like, what? A magic vacuum? Iris just sucks the code that made Stress do magic into her?"

"Believe it or not, yes!" Mumbo looked absolutely baffled and horrified for actually getting his guess correct. 

"The magic vital... did it change?" Iskall worriedly asked.

"Yes, but not that much. I suppose Stress simply has a lot of magic to begin with. And I suppose I should mention that after Iris lets go of Stress, she was smiling." 

Smiling? 

It suddenly created an unsettling feeling within the room. Wels didn't really know exactly how or why it would, but it did. Mumbo was the first to react. 

"B-But- Iris-" He stopped, his expression unreadable for barely a moment before it turned to horror and concern. Perhaps it was more of fear, Wels can't tell. "Oh god, I think we may a child that is in need of help." 

And suddenly it makes sense. Mumbo was worried about Iris because he saw her in need of help. 

"Mumbo, what do you mean by that?" Joe's voice was strangely low and serious, unlike the usual chipper tone he put up. Wels realized that Joe kind of looked threatening like this. "What did you see?"

Mumbo gulped and opened his mouth, but no words really formed. Iskall was by his side, giving him moral support by rubbing his back and silently exchanging gestures with one another that only the Architects can do. Wels had the urge to also give him a few reassuring pats on the back, even a few words or two but held back. Iskall got this. 

Eventually, Mumbo did tell them what he saw. It wasn't as long as Cub's were, but it was detailed enough that everyone felt the same horrifying feeling at the thought of Iris screaming for help in her own body. It left them uncomfortable. 

For a brief moment, Wels was reminded of the time he was in training school. He didn't know why he would relate such an event to what Iris was going through- because it has nothing in common. But perhaps it was due to the same feelings he felt learning about Iris and the memory that caused him to remember it. 

Wels shook his head, forcing himself to forget. Now's not the time to remember the past.

"So... are we saying the Iris we're seeing now is not the real Iris? Just a facade- a fake?" Iskall questioned them, his voice soft. It was almost as if he sounded defeated at the thought of such things- such heartbreaking things. "All of the memories we have with the kid... fuck, what will Grian and the others think?" 

"We can assume that the Iris we are seeing is simply an impersonator to the original, but I believe there is something more to this than what meets the eye." Again, Joe was using his serious tone that made Wels intimidated. However, it no longer had its threatening underlying tone, more of a 'let's get to business' kind of serious. Though it's also something Wels did not expect to see of Joe.

"I believe what Doc told us in the beginning was still true. Iris has no idea what's happening. No memories, nothing. Something bad happened in her homeworld, causing her to forget such vital things for her age. Someone changed her coding, forcing her into this state of naivety and cluelessness, depending on us to help her learn and grow. However, this heinous person who changed her code was likely not very experienced, because when Iris is introduced to certain activities, such as reading or drawing shapes, she is able to learn those skills quickly because she has done it before, therefore breaking through some parts of her code. Not all of it, though."

"She can't talk properly because her coding doesn't allow it." Wels stated, realization settling in.

"Exactly. That may be why she was so frustrated, Mumbo, because she can't literally talk despite knowing how. But I also think that the coding also blocked out her... I suppose you can say consciousness." 

"Consciousness?" Iskall echoed. 

"Iris likely knew something was wrong." Cub explained for him. "That part of knowledge was small, but it grew as time went on. Eventually, she tried to reach out to someone, trying to tell them that something was terribly wrong. However, before she could reach out, her coding shut that part of her off, removing that set of consciousness that allowed her to recognize the feeling from the rest of her brain. That's what Mumbo saw. Am I correct, Joe?" 

Joe nodded. "Could never say it better myself, Cub." 

"... I don't get it." 

Everyone turned to look at Wels. 

"I mean- I get the reason for everything else you said- it totally sounds legit, not gonna lie." Wels could feel himself sweat slightly when Joe and Cub gave him an unimpressed look. "What I don't understand is... why Iris." 

"Might want to elaborate on that, dude," Mumbo said. 

"Why her? As far as I'm aware, it's impossible for one player to change the coding of another straight from the source itself. That requires some high level tech knowledge or something. If it's by magic then I understand- look at Cleo-" Joe visibly winced at that- "But what you guys are saying is implying that someone hacked into Iris' coding and changed it to become how she is today. So what I'm asking is why is it so easy for them to change Iris' coding?" 

For once since this rather long discussion started, everyone was silent. No one seemed to have an answer for that. No one except for the poet himself.

"That's because she isn't." 

It was Joe's turn to gather everyone's attention. They stared, confused as to what he meant by that. Wels didn't know why, but he was suddenly feeling dread pile into the pit of his stomach for what Joe might say next. 

The poet gave all his hermits a calculated look before locking eyes with the knight. 

"The reason it was easy to change Iris' coding was because she's-"

* * *

An hour passed.

They were making remarkable progress. They knew the sun was setting soon, so it was very likely they would have to stop to rest for the night, sleep through all the dangers that lurked within the darkness. 

Grian was leading the way most of the time, the other hermits trailing behind. More often than not, False would be flying beside him but even she could not entirely keep up with his speed. After an hour of non-stop flying, Grian gave the gesture that made them slow down and descent into the small forest below them. 

They were finally taking a break. Python looked exhausted as he collapsed on the ground. Jevin looked like he wanted to pass out. Besides the hybrids everyone else was feeling fine, if not just exhausted from the trip.

"How long left, G?" Tango asked, making a small make-shift base for them to rest in. Grian kneeled down, and like before pressed his hands into the grass below. 

He let the noises around him turn to white noise, and with heavy concentration, snapped his eyes open with the flames going out. He briefly remembers the first time he did the spell- the flames hurt his eyes a lot, but eventually he just got used to it. 

Seeing as they were thousands of blocks away from the others, it was easy to identify the magic energy belonging to the purple light. It was nearby, likely a thirty-minute walk from where they were. It was above ground, too. 

"Not too far," Grian said once he was done, standing on slightly shaky legs. "Though I think we should rest first, get ourselves prepared and stuff." 

"Well, since we're so close, I suppose we can take a short break. There's no way we're gonna.... Ugh... Sleep through the night just to go to a light that's not so far..." Python managed to say in between breaths. Jevin felt pity and gave his friend a couple of pats on the back. 

False was staring at Grian, making him shudder at the intense gazes of the fighter. "May I help you?"

"Hm... It's weird seeing you do magic after all this time. No offense or anything."

"Eh, none taken. It's my fault that I didn't share this part about myself to the rest of you."

The two were silent for a moment. 

"It's not anyone's fault and definitely not yours. Though, if I may ask, why didn't you share that part about you? I doubt any of us would think differently of you if you have magic." 

It was a valid question and one Grian thought a lot about. Somewhere deep inside him, he knew the hermits wouldn't think he was any different than he usually was if he revealed to them that he has magic, but that was after he knew the hermits personally. Heck, he and Mumbo were friends before he joined the server and Mumbo didn't even knew he had magic.

(Or maybe he did? Grian remembered after a certain drinking session with Mumbo that he was vaguely asking him about his powers but miserably failed to do so.)

Grian wanted to keep that part of himself a secret for as long as he could, but he did not factor in the fact that there will be other magic users that could sense his magic energy the minute he entered the server. He remembered Xisuma cornering him on his second day, confronting him about his magic. He also remembered Xisuma tricking him to meet Scar and Cub a month later to talk about his magic. Tango just kind of knew the entire time and only confirmed it after he stumbled upon the four of them having their meeting. 

The four hermits had told him the others wouldn't think badly of him if he revealed he had magic but Grian wasn't confident in that. It was due to the reasoning why he joined the hermitcraft server to begin with- to forget he ever had these powers. It only holds too many bad memories. 

But, strangely enough, as time went on he grew more accepting of his magic. He never did anything magical or the likes, but he was ever so slowly coming to terms with the idea that he has these powers now. They are a part of him, just like how the Vex magic was part of Cub and Scar. They were accepting of him even though they had no idea of what he was capable of. 

All except for... well, Xisuma. 

Grian softly sighed to himself, averting his gaze somewhere else on the grass below him. He tried not to think about that. 

"I didn't like my magic." Grian began explaining. "It was given to me as a gift by some god or whatever. Every single time I used the magic, it was for something bad. I guess you can say it hold too many bad memories for me, which is why I tried to hide it from you guys. You don't really want to hear my sad story." 

False hummed in acknowledgment. She didn't look bothered, almost as if she understood what he was saying. "Yea, I get it. Cub and Scar were the same when they first got their Vex magic. I think they were doing some... some dumb stuff for the fun of it but ended up having the offer of the Vex magic. I don't really know what they were thinking, accepting the offer, but I don't think they realize the consequences. I guess what I'm trying to say is that they too don't really like their magic due to doing terrible things with it under the influence of the Vex, but recently they only started using their magic for good." 

Grian had suspected that when he was told about the Vex magic Cub and Scar possessed. Although the pair didn't seem disturbed about having such powers, he was made aware that they still find that part of themselves rather uncomfortable and frustrating, especially with what they have done in the previous seasons. 

"Hey, guys! I see something!" 

Looking up, Grian saw Tango making a cobblestone pillar on top of the half-heartedly made shack. He was pointing towards the east.

"What is it?!" Python called back. 

"It's a huge tower thingie! Made of... something?! Heck, I think it's bedrock!" 

Grian's breath hitched in his throat as the other hermits verbally voiced out their confusion. They didn't know how a bedrock structure could be made, especially in their world. Grian does because he knows within this universe, there's only one type of magic that could make such impossible structures. 

"Grian? You okay, man?" Jevin stood by his side, placing a slimy hand on his shoulder. Despite the slimy texture, it felt solid on top of Grian's shoulder. He dismissed the concern off and took out some rockets. 

"I'm fine. Is everyone good to fly a bit more?"

Everyone responded with various versions of 'Yes'. As everyone was preparing to leave (Tango sadly having to tear down his small little shack), Grian noticed the others giving him concerned looks. Python and Jevin's expressions were harder to read due to their biology, but he could sense they were keeping an eye on him. False actually tried to bee vague with her glances but even Grian caught on that. 

Tango didn't just _not_ hide the worry on his face, but he had actually stayed near Grian as they prepare to take flight. Once they were in the air, he was up on the front with Grian.

The bedrock structure wasn't as tall and grand as Grian had expected to be. Still, it had its intimidating flair as it towered over the canopy of trees. It was rather small, too, almost as if it wasn't meant to be a tower but something to encase it in. Something small, like a light. 

The group of hermits decided to be safe and landed at least ten blocks away from the structure. It gave off a menacing magic aura that even the non-magic users can feel, though they would think of it as intimidation. Grian recognized this magic as those of a Watcher, but weaker, as if someone wasn't trained long enough to hone its skill to the fullest. Tango was giving him a look, as if recognizing this magic energy because it was similar to those of Grian's.

There were two large obsidian doors in front of them, towering and looming over as if its own presence was just as intimidating as the structure. Maybe it did for the others, but Grian wasn't phased. Rather, he found it odd that one door was one block short of the other, breaking the symmetrical shape of the doors. 

The longer he's around the structure, the less worry Grian became, only to replace it with confusion.

"I don't suppose we could just... break the door, right?" Tango asked the group. Jevin rolled his eyes.

"It's a door, Tango, it's meant to just open by itself." 

"You think the door this menacing is just gonna open for us?"

As Tango and Jevin bickered, Python walked forward to place a tentative clawed hand over the surface, feeling the bumpy texture of the obsidian doors. His eyes were narrowed, concentrating on the block before pushing his weight on it. Much to no one's surprise, the door did not budge. 

"See? What did I tell ya, Jev? There's no way an obsidian door can just open."

"Yea, and there's no way the obsidian is the same as one in our world. Obsidian is meant to be smooth but this is bumpy in various places." Python stated. False joined Python at the front of the door to feel the texture, and let out a small hum of surprise. 

"That's... weird. If this structure is generated somehow, it should have followed the codes of an obsidian, right? Like, this is definitely obsidian, but it failed to generate the texture codes?"

The world didn't fail to generate the full coding of obsidian, Grian silently thought. It's the weak watcher magic that failed. The Watcher that did this is so pathetically weak they can't even form obsidian properly. 

Which begs the question... What kind of Watcher exists that has shitty magic? Watchers are one of the most powerful beings in the Universe they might as well be gods- Grian would know, he was with two for a few years. Unless someone that isn't a Watcher has the same magic for some reason, there was no way they would leave a structure this hideous. 

Like, seriously, the doors aren't even symmetrical. 

"Well, we can talk about where this came from later, we gotta find a way to open this door." Python said to them, frowning slightly. "Hey, where's Tango?"

The Netherborn was nowhere near where they were, which surprised Grian. He was sure Tango was going to stick by his side ever since they took off earlier. Though he didn't have to worry long when he heard the familiar sounds of rockets being ignited above them. Looking up, Tango was circling the structure, as if studying it, before gliding back down to the ground. 

"No windows or much detailing... Not gonna lie, guys, this structure doesn't seem like it was meant to look pretty or anything."

"Not really. This was supposed to look pretty- grand, spectacular, whatever. It's a half-assed attempt to show off. A disappointment, really." Grian said without thinking. If there's one way the Watchers show their superiority, it was through these structures. They don't care if the structures made the environment worse or not, only cared that they state their place in the world. Tall, huge structures made of bedrock that is elegantly crafted in a way that even skilled builders would admire. Grian was one of those builders, and he despised it.

When he noticed the silence within the hermits, he turned to give them a look and turned pale when he saw their confused faces. He talked too much.

"How'd you know?" Jevin curiously asked. 

Grian lamely shrugged. "Uh... Good guess?" 

"Well, we still have to figure out how to open the door. I doubt the floor is made of anything but bedrock. We could break down the door though I have a feeling it won't let us." 

Jevin walked up to the door, tracing a finger down the crack between the doors. Grian found it odd that there was no lock, not even doorknobs that could help them open the door. 

"Hmm... Hold up, I have an idea." 

Before anyone could ask, the slime hybrid pushed the sleeves of his hoodie up to his elbows. He experimentally shifted his hand to become more fluid-like that made False shudder from beside Grian. The blue fingers extended and changed until they become as small as a nail, then inserted the small like tentacle things through the crack of the door. It looked as if he was trying to find something. 

"I will never get used to that." False commented. 

"Should've seen how slimes produce then-"

"This isn't sex ed, we're fine!" Tango interjected without a filter. Grian, Python, and False gagged at the thought. Jevin only grinned devilishly from where he stood until he let out a small gasp of surprise.

"Oh woo? What's this?" 

There was a sound of a lever clicking, and the ever so familiar sound of obsidian scraping against the ground filled the air. Jevin pulled back his slimy limbs and jumped back to avoid getting hit by the obsidian doors. The awful sound and the sad remains of dirt being scraped by the door left Grian in a state of absolute bafflement. 

Seriously, who in this Universe would let a watcher be so terrible in making structures? That might as well be illegal. 

Within thirty seconds, the door was fully opened, and inside was the light.

Grian expected the light to be held in some kind of grandstand or throne or something, but it was literally just the light. The inside isn't large and there was nothing. No chests, no stained glass telling ridiculous stories, nothing. 

He didn't dwell on that thought for too long when Tango spoke up. 

"Uh, so... now what?"

It was a dumb question, because they all know what they should do. They found the light, so the next thing they should do is figure out what the hell it is. 

When Grian turned to look at everyone, who saw their gazes directed towards him. This made him sigh. 

"If I die from this, I'm haunting you for the rest of my life." 

No one laughed, though False did twitch a smile. 

The hermits stayed outside, keeping their distance as Grian entered the structure. Immediately, he was encased in the cold, dead cage. Temperate drastically dropped and if he noticed the cold biting on the tips of his fingers painfully, he did not show it. It was also much more darker inside despite the wide doors opened behind him. The only light that really lighted up the place was this orb of magic in front of him, giving off a soft lilac glow that reeked of Watcher magic and something else. 

Grian reached out to touch the light but stopped half-way, pulling back. 

There was something wrong. Something that Grian can't describe. A part of him was telling him to back out, let someone else do it. But another part was sweetly whispering in his ear to take the light, to touch it with his own hands. To feel the strong energy coming from it. 

Oh, how he badly wanted to ignore those whisperings. It reminded him of painful promises made by the people he thought he could trust and depend on. Whispers of glory, of power, a place to belong in this Universe. Grian didn't want any of that. 

(That was partially a lie. He wanted to feel like he belonged somewhere. That's why he kept on sticking around. It was a mistake.)

But the whispers... It sounded so similar to _them_. Their sweet, calm voice, almost like a mother's cooing her child. It sounded so genuine no matter how wrong it was. He hated that he felt himself longed to hear their soft lullabies once more. 

"Grian?" 

This was a trap. Grian _knew_ this was a trap. But he can't let his friends be in danger for something they aren't even aware of. 

Grian has to protect them. 

The whispers. 

"Grian?!" 

Grian reached forward and clenched his fists around the light.

* * *

Three things happened at the same time. 

The dark sky roared shook. 

The black vines dug into the dirt.

And Grian screamed.

* * *

_There was a moment of silence as Xeere looked down at the small child, curled in his arms. She was half-asleep, though he doubted the girl would be aware of what was about to happen. She looked peaceful, innocent. A small part of Xeere felt guilt in his heart for what he was about to do, but he knew he must make a decision._

_The Watchers had poisoned his brother. Filled him with greed for... what was it? Power? To make lives better for his people?_

_To make this girl his own tool just to fight his own brother?_

_Xeere was nothing like his brother, so he briefly wondered why he was even giving this child a chance for a better life when it could be easier to just end it right here and then._

_Maybe it was because, during this time of war, he became sensitive. Became vulnerable. He began to empathize._

_This girl did not deserve to go through such horrors in her childhood._

_Xeere carefully adjusted her, carrying her with one arm. He used his other hand to form a rift that could send this girl to another world, hopefully somewhere where Xonne couldn't reach her._

_The thought made him laugh. With their powers, no doubt Xonne would find her. But at the very least... he could give her time to have a happy childhood._

_Maybe in some miracle, this girl will be able to survive._

_Xeere doubted so._

_In the event of Xonne actually finding this child, it is very unlikely Xeere will be there to stop his brother. Or end the child's life before Xonne could reach her._

_Xeere might as well be dead if that ever happened._

_His finger twitched as he formed a small orb of light, glowing a soft purple that reminded him of the End. He hoped that he had coded this correctly, with his limited skills he was unsure whether or not this plan will work._

_A part of him hoped it doesn't._

_But this light will make sure that the moment it sensed a strong presence of Watcher magic, his vines will find the girl and reach her before Xonne does. The death wouldn't be as fast as he hoped, but it would be fast enough that Xonne won't be able to react._

_Somewhere deep in his mind, Xeere wondered if there was another way._

_Somewhere deep in his soul, Xeere prayed, ironically enough, that the child would be able to have a good life._

_Without wasting another second, Xeere softly dropped the child into the portal, watching her body get sucked into the rift. The orb of light soon followed._

_He knew his vines will keep her safe for the meantime._

_The thought made Xeere feel bitter, watching the portal close._

_The same vines will be the end of the child, too._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, feel free to ask any questions you may have. 
> 
> We are getting close to the end, fellas. 
> 
> Hang in there


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me posting another chapter? That means procrastination has taken over my life once more! 
> 
> This was a difficult chapter to write due to how serious it was plot-wise. I've spent literally half of the chapters building up to this moment yet i felt as if i havent done it justice. though it is up to you to decide that
> 
> i gave you guys time to prepare yourselves. be ready.

Doc was left in a state of shock it was almost hilarious to find him so silent, but Xisuma did not laugh nor thought it was funny. Whether he knew it or not, this man formed a special bond with Iris within such a short amount of time. To hear that she would be fated to die? Xisuma can't imagine what was going through in his friend's head.

Seto was giving him a grim smile. "I'm sorry, Doc. I wish there was another way." 

"I don't- Fuck." Xisuma reached out to his friend but was stopped by Seto's disapproving look. Doc was breathing heavily, and with an alarming realization, Xisuma recognized the signs of self-destruction. Before he could do anything to help, Doc walked off somewhere, mumbling things to himself as he gripped the sides of his head with his large hands. 

"He fought the urges for so long." Seto idly commented, surprising Xisuma. "Being part creeper must have been difficult, but I admire his stubbornness." 

The Voidkind couldn't help but feel angry inside. Seto told Doc his kid was going to die and then started complimenting him a minute later?! He wasn't sure if years of being stuck in this library reduced Seto to lack the decency to be sensitive or have a brain cell... Whatever it was, Xisuma was frustrated. 

"Seto, there has to be a way." 

Seto glared at him. "The stories are set in stone. There is no way to change it the moment the words become true. Even if there were a million other possibilities, it wouldn't matter. In all those possibilities, the child dies. The Archives recognized this. The universe recognized this. There's no way to avoid the inevitable." 

Xisuma breathed heavily, his mind aching but not giving up. He glanced towards Doc, frowning when he saw him hunched over the bookcase, one arm pushing against the shelf to steady himself. He could hear Doc's mumbles, and quite faintly he recognized most of them were of apologies and of how he was stupid for not spending time with Iris.

Something in him was boiling. Xisuma composed himself by clenching his fists really hard, the gloves making it more restricting. He was angry- not sure who, he realized. At Seto? The brothers? The Watchers? The universe? 

Without giving Seto a warning, Xisuma grabbed the book and automatically flipped to the latest page of the story. Much to his horror, he realized the page was rapidly filling up. The latest paragraphs told him of... 

His eyes widened behind the visor.

Grian touched the light. 

He remembered Doc talking about a light but... Whatever Grian did, it reacted violently. The book hasn't revealed exactly the consequences of Grian's actions, but he knew Iris' death was one of them. 

Xisuma traced the words that held Iris' name- permanent on the page, destined to be killed by Xeere, mind racing a million times faster than before as he tried to come up with a plan to save Iris.

* * *

Scar cried when the vine he was poking on suddenly grew twice as large and began moving across the dirt, plunging into the ground. In fact, with a startle, Scar realizing that the vines were now active, and very much so. Most had dug into the ground for reasons he does not know but many were now raising up in the air and began whipping around rapidly. Cleo had to pull him out from his state of shock by shouting in his ear and pushing him out of the way. 

The sky was rapidly turning dark. What used to be a clear late afternoon was now covered in grey clouds with thunder booming in the air. Raindrops soon began to pelt on them like gravel, and purple lighting struck down on the earth, forming fire he knew would be futile to take out. 

A pained cry came from behind them. Turning around, they saw TFC being hauled into the air by two vines- one wrapped tightly around his chest and the other pulling on his leg, hard. It was as if they were going to tear him apart. 

"Leave him ALONE!" Scar, in a fit of anger to seeing his fellow hermit get hurt, thrust his hands out that was covered in a blue-grey aura. It wrapped around the vine, restricting their movements. 

Cleo worked fast and ran over to slash the vines with her diamond sword. It seemed like once it became active, the skin became softer for it was now possible to slice through the inky vines. 

With the vines dead, Scar used his magic to gently put TFC down before jumping out of the way when a vine strike the ground, the spot where he was before. With tears threatening to fall, Scar began to aggressively fight against the vines who now notice that he was a threat. 

His mind blurred after that, only recognizing the feeling of the Vex magic in his fingertips. He probably used a fireball or two... Maybe fifteen but he did not care. He only saw TFC getting hurt- a wise guy and such a friendly man. Didn't mind at all when his building skills or redstone wasn't as good as the other hermits. How _dare_ they hurt him. 

"SCAR! COME ON!" 

Cleo's voice rang in his ear and before he knew it, he was being hauled ass by the zombie hybrid, who was supporting TFC that seemed to be limping quite a bit as they ran through the fields. Now that his mind was clearer, Scar made sure any stray vines were torn apart by his Vex magic, though it wasn't a lot. 

"TFC? Chef? Oh my god, are you okay?" Scar asked when he saw inky goo covering the leg where the vines had wrapped around. TFC groaned in pain, eyes clenched tightly, but used his free hand to give him a thumbs up. 

"W-We have to tell the others," Cleo said, panting slightly. "The vines I- I think they're gonna go after Iris." 

"How do you know that?"

"A hunch, but after all this time, it just seemed likely."

Scar frowned because he realized a moment later, it does sound likely. They didn't say anything as they trudged through the path to go back to New Hermitville, thoughts racing as to what exactly caused this. 

"Fuck, hold on..." 

Cleo hesitantly let TFC go as the older hermit leaned against the tree, his breath uneven, skin glistening from both sweat and rain. He was in pain. 

"I'm just holding you two back. You have to go on without me-"

"We are NOT leaving you!" Scar protested but TFC was not having it. 

"Look, the kid and everyone else is in danger. You two are better off defending each other than help an old man walk through the rain." 

With the storm, it was difficult for Scar to hear TFC but it was clear he made up his mind. Time was running out and wasting time arguing over this isn't worth it. 

"Flying out to the storm isn't good, either." Cleo pointed out. TFC grinned at her. 

"Heh, never know till' you try it." 

"I suppose we don't have much of a choice if we want to get there fast." Scar frowned, not liking this idea one bit. "I... TFC, you're hurt. The darkness will spawn mobs." 

TFC didn't look bothered, only simply pulling out a shovel and a pickaxe. "You know I could dig long tunnels, right?"

"But with your leg-"

"Ah, don't worry about me. Worry about Iris." 

The mention of the child made Scar silent. Even though he hadn't known the child for so long, there was no doubt that Iris had made an impact on everyone's lives. 

She was a part of them now. She was part of the family. 

Seeing as there was no longer any objections, TFC nudged the two back to New Hermitville.

"Go, I'll be fine." TFC grinned. Cleo gently tugged on Scar's sleeve, an unreadable expression on her face as she gazed at TFC. 

"You better take care of yourself, old man," Cleo ordered with a tight smile. TFC only nodded. 

Scar had never flown through a storm before. He would have screamed in exhilaration if it weren't for the worry in his gut.

* * *

"Why?" 

Seto looked at Xisuma questioningly. "Whatever do you mean, Xisuma?" 

"Didn't Xeere want to give Iris a second chance? Why does he want to kill her all of a sudden?"

Xisuma glared at Seto when he scoffed, as if he found Xisuma's question stupid. "Xeere is the God of Death in his world. There was no reason for him to care about one little girl but he did because he felt sympathy- something his brother lacked as the war continued. Despite his 'good deed', he is still the God of Death. He has no concern about ensuring one _lives_ , only knowing when one _dies_. He knew the child had to die because it was unfair for her to keep on living as a tool. As a whole, his concern is keeping his brother from being overpowered, not the child."

The admin scowled, nearly wanting to rip the pages apart despite knowing he won't be able to due to the rules of this place. 

"What about _after_ that?"

Doc suddenly appeared by Xisuma's side, his living eye devoid of any emotion but exhaustion, tear tracks found on his cheek. His lips were formed in a thin line as he looked at Seto. 

Seto quirked an eyebrow towards him. "What do you mean?"

"Iris dying is only set in stone in this part of the story." Doc pointed at the permanent name with his finger. "But after that part of the story... we still have control. We can still make choices." 

Then Doc turned to Xisuma, his eyes intense but determined. "We could still save Iris."

* * *

"Grian, Grian please come back."

He blinked once. Twice. Two sets of blonde hair filled his vision. 

Somewhere in his mind, he recognized the unnatural shade of golden hair of a Netherborn's and a bright shade of blonde with brown hidden between them. The second one would have been harder to decipher but frankly, there's literally only one other hermit who has long natural blonde hair being tucked into place by a pair of goggles. 

It also took a moment for Grian to realize that he was on the ground, both of his arms restricted by one gloved, one rough. That description sounded funny in his brain he almost laughed, but he didn't when he realized droplets of water on his face. 

With the dark background, Grian assumed that it was the rain but he remembered two blondes were filling his vision. With a startling realization, he realized the water droplets were tears, and even worse it was coming from ocean-blue eyes.

"Grian?" False asked her voice barely above a whisper and cracking. "Grian... Oh my god." 

"Falsey?" Grian responded, his voice hurting despite having no idea why. Looking slightly to his left, he saw red eyes. "Tango... What-"

"You were screaming and- and then it started storming heavily, mobs are spawning everywhere." Tango hastily explained, helping Grian to sit up. "We were being surrounded at all sides. We tried to fight them off but they were just too many. Python he- he died from a skeleton and you reacted you-" He cut himself off. 

Grian's eyes were wide. "Tango, what did I do?"

The Netherborn didn't say anything, unsure of what to say.

"You were in pain from whatever you did, but after hearing Python die? It was as if you were a completely different person." False explained instead. It was then Grian realized the area around them was free of any mobs except for Jevin, who looked wounded but otherwise okay. He was standing a block away, sword acting as his support but keeping guard. 

"Your eyes glowed purple and your hands- they let out this sparks of magic." Tango continued. "We tried to call you but you weren't responding. Dude, you went haywire, killing every single mob you see. Even after they were all gone you won't stop attacking we- we had to put you down and-" 

"We were scared. We thought we lost you."

This was the first time he saw either Tango and False show actual fear. Sure, people get scared when a mob suddenly appears behind you or a hermit randomly chases you, forcing you to run away screaming, but this fear was different. They weren't scared because of Grian suddenly going crazy (maybe concerned, but not entirely scared). They were scared that they would _lose_ Grian.

The thought made him tear up a bit. 

"I'm fine I- I don't know what happened but... wait, the light!"

"Gone," Jevin said. "Formed the storms the moment you touched it. I think the other hermits are experiencing the same storm as well."

Just as he said that all four of their communicators buzzed rapidly. Tango pulled out his communicator first and started reading the message out loud.

"Vines are active. Mobs spawning everywhere. Help, we can't get to the kid in Area 77. Blocking our path."

"Shit, we're thousands of blocks away!" False cried out. "We won't reach there on time!"

Grian looked down at his hands, covered in cuts and dirt. However, he saw the swirls of purple appearing and disappearing. Clenching his fists tight, the purple swirls multiplied until it began sparking Watcher magic. 

"I have an idea, hold on to me." 

False and Jevin obliged immediately, holding onto his shoulders without hesitation, even if their expressions seemed unsure of what he was planning to do. Tango, on the other hand, caught on when he saw the purple magic but was concerned. 

"Grian, I don't know if this is a good idea-"

"We don't have any other choice, Tango," Grian replied, but Tango wasn't backing down.

"I know! But you just recovered from whatever the hell you got into. You haven't rest much from using a lot of magic- This can overwhelm you." 

The concern Tango was showing nearly made Grian laugh, but he didn't. 

"Well, I suppose it's a good thing I have quite a tolerance." Grian grinned, joking just a bit. Tango scoffed at what he knew was a lame attempt of dismissing his concerns, but he saw the trust in his red eyes. It was proven when Tango reached over to hold his arm. 

"Alright, hermits. Hold on." 

Grian concentrated, mind numb to everything around him except for the spell and magic he was conjuring in his body. The zaps of purple magic flew around the four of them, making some kind of spherical shape. It then wrapped around them before they disappeared into purple particles. 

For the other three, they will only feel like floating. They won't see anything but darkness, and they will only be aware of the lack of air. 

For Grian, he will see images. Teleportation by spells isn't as easy as what other people may assume. It's not quite the same as an admin teleporting. It's even more difficult having to do it with people. It may be because of Grian's lack of practice but he could already feel a migraine forming in his head. 

He wanted to go straight to Iris, tried to will himself to imagine the young girl. He even tried to imagine Area 77 itself but for some reason, his mind went straight to a single hermit. 

A charming smile and pair of sunglasses to match, long dark hair tied into a low ponytail that somehow fits his very chill and friendly personality, as well as ears that often fail to hide his true feelings. 

For a split second, Grian saw Ren. The day they found Iris together, the time Grian watched Ren disappear to the Nether with Iris by his side, when they talk to each other in his futuristic base, the night they were vulnerable and the fact they were sharing the same bed. 

The very same night Grian realized he was mesmerized with Ren's blue eyes. 

It was immediate. 

The four of them find themselves in New Hermitville, surrounded by black vines whipping violently across the air and various mobs attacking. 

The sounds of swords clashing and arrows whizzing filled the air if the thunder and rain hadn't done so already. 

Grian wasn't sure how the other hermits were feeling after the teleportation, but one thing he immediately noticed was the dog hybrid just a few blocks away. He was fighting against two armor-wearing zombies with swords, and by the looks of things he seemed to be struggling but at the same time holding up his side well enough to not be worried about.

Except for a skeleton that was raising their bow, the tip of their arrow pointing straight at Ren's head. 

" **R** _E_ N!" Grian's voice got distorted but he did not notice. He lung forward, his hand reaching out to form a translucent wall that had blocked the path of the arrow. This left the skeleton confused, but was immediately poofed when Grian threw a fireball at its face, letting the magic kill it. 

"G?!" Ren had managed to kill off one of the zombies and narrowly dodged the other's attack. "Where did you-"

Grian had pulled out his own sword and immediately plunged the blade through its torso. The zombie let out some odd groans before poofing into rotten flesh. Ren stood nearby, mouth agape and eyes wide behind dark shades. The hybrid hastily took off his sunglasses to look at Grian clearer while at the same time allowing Grian to see his amazing blue eyes. 

"Since when were your eyes _purple_?!" 

The question startled Grian, and almost unconsciously he reached up to touch the edge of his eye. Of course, he won't be able to see his eyes being purple but he could imagine the bizarre image. Internally, he felt himself wincing a tiny bit. His eyes only turn purple when he's doing magic, a reminder for himself that he can't hide his magic even if he wanted. 

"We can talk about that later. Where's Iris?" Grian instead asked, dodging the question. The mention of their kid made Ren's eyes widen in shock then fear. He turned to the direction of Area 77- allowing them to see Impulse narrowly saved Zedaph by slicing the inky black vines off of him. 

Grian watched as Impulse dragged Zedaph away from the vines that were blocking their path- and slowly but surely circling around them.

"I don't suppose you can, uh, do the thing you did to come here and find Iris?" Ren wondered aloud, yelping loudly when an arrow whizzed by his head. Grian narrowed his eyes at the skeleton and used his own bow to shoot back its arrows. It took at least four shots before it poofed into bones, only for a zombie and two creepers to replace its spot. 

Experimentally, Grian opened his palm. There was a spark of purple magic but besides that nothing else. He must have used up most of his energy teleporting the four of them at such long distances. He could potentially try teleporting to Area 77 but at the risk of overwhelming himself and making him another vulnerable target. 

Grian's body was already recovering but at the rate it was going it he won't have time.

Besides, the black vines don't seem on planning to make him leave. 

Grian realized this as the large tentacle-like vines started circling around him- and what he realized were also the rest of the hermits. They were all backed up to each other, weapons out and keeping an eye for one another. 

Though out of everyone, he realized the vines have their attention on _him_. 

"What's the plan?!" He heard Bdubs shout from somewhere behind him.

There was no plan- at least not one that involves any of them not getting killed in the process. Somewhere in the back of Grian's head, he wondered where Python had spawned. 

Before any of them could reply, the cluster of vines nearer to False and Tango was ignited into grey-blue fire. Grian looked up and smiled widely when he saw Scar and Cleo flying towards them, the former having his arms out with his signature magic aura surrounding the hands. 

"We kick their asses!" Cleo answered Bdubs, smiling cockily as she avoided the attacks of the vines trying to reach her in the air. 

"You know what? I like that idea!"

With newfound vigor, everyone sprang into action. Scar and Tango used their magic to widen their arena, the others fighting against the mobs that happen to pass through the vines. 

Ren was with Grian the entire time as they fought off both the vines and the mobs together. Although, when they manage to have at most ten seconds of breathing room, Ren and Grian exchanged glances. From there, they managed to form one single coherent thought.

Where were Doc and Xisuma?

* * *

"That is- you do know that what you're saying is completely crazy, right?" Seto questioned Doc, his voice not hiding his bafflement of such ideas. 

"But it's possible," Xisuma replied, suddenly getting the idea of where Doc was going. Such a good idea it was, too, because Seto's right. It _is_ crazy. "Because Iris is an NPC." 

"Her codes will still remain and because of her nature of being an NPC, it is completely possible to spawn her back in." Doc continued, becoming a bit too excited at the concept of reviving an NPC child but maybe it was due to finding a solution out of this.

Seto didn't look so pleased. "The child's coding is too unstable to survive in the server mainframe. She may have survived all this time because of the fact she is able to stabilize her coding while alive, but when she dies? Her codes won't survive- not in a server like yours. The server will automatically delete her code because of how unstable it is."

"But it will still be there," Xisuma asked though it ended up like a statement. Seto didn't reply. 

"I'd say a minute or two until her entire file is deleted by the server the second she poofed," Doc said, voice a bit low and bitter. "But even so, the server will detect her unstable codes and will chip away parts of it. Her memories will be removed." 

Deep in Xisuma, he felt a sense of guilt within him. He had remembered when Generik first came to him talking about a new server. He had agreed to help with setting it up and had known about what the server was capable of doing. Heck, he had helped to set up the coding that lets the server automatically delete anything that seemed unstable or a threat. Over the years the coding must have lost its efficiency due to the lack of threats or the likes of it, but it's still there. 

If they don't come up with a plan, they will lose Iris. 

Seto looked between the two hermits with uncertainty in his eyes. "... And you two believe that spawning Iris back after dying will be any better than what she has gone through? All the suffering that both gods put on her world and you want to put her through more suffering by not letting her rest?" 

For once, Xisuma was left speechless. 

As much as he hated to admit it, Seto has a point. Iris had gone through suffering for her age- of which she doesn't even have a single memory of. She became the product of her suffering- someone naive, innocent, only for her to be killed off in the end anyway. If they somehow revive her, what will they gain of it? What will _she_ gain from it? Spawning NPCs is easy in theory, but with Iris in such a fragile state, they could do more harm than good. 

"And you said it yourself. Her memories will be removed. Do you believe that within two minutes or less you could save her? It's unlikely you would be able to save at least a fragment of the Iris you knew. So why try?"

Seto's words stung, but Xisuma knew he did not mean to sound malicious. He was simply stating a fact- one of which Xisuma understood but did not want to believe. In the back of his mind, he truly wondered if it was worth saving Iris. 

"You know what? Fuck you." Doc spat, the harsh words snapping Xisuma out from his thoughts with a startled gasp. "You wanna know why I want to save the kid? I don't fucking care that she doesn't remember me or the hermits. I don't even care if she ends up being that naive girl that I saw when I first met her. Fuck that and fuck you, I am going to fight for her life."

"It is not your decision to make such a choice." Seto glared, but Doc only glared harder.

"And you think Iris had one in the beginning? She didn't make the choice to spawn in a world where the two brothers are so shitty at communication they started a war! She didn't choose to have her wings ripped out- didn't have a single say when Xonne decided to take away her basic rights to feel and even think just to become a vessel! She didn't ask Xeere to send her in our world and now she doesn't even get to decide whether she could live or die. All this time, Iris didn't get to make a choice."

Doc was trembling, likely from the adrenaline but his glare did not soften. 

"Now? Even if she doesn't remember a single thing... At the very least we would give Iris a choice to do what she wants with her life. I don't know how we could give her that but damn it no one deserves this. Iris doesn't deserve this. She deserves so much more than this." His voice softened at the end, his glare now turning into one of pleading. 

"Please. I don't want Iris to die like this. Even if she doesn't want to be a part of our Hermitcraft, we could at least give her the chance to have a life." 

Seto's mask broke. His well-put facade of annoyance and obvious pessimism about the idea was torn to show one of sympathy and even sadness. But there was one thing that Xisuma notice about his expressions. Seto looked... there was a look of resolute.

"Alright... I think I have an idea. But I need to confirm to both you and Xisuma. Do you really want to save Iris?" 

There was no need for discussion as both hermits replied yes. 

"Then Xisuma, give me your hand." 

Xisuma did not hesitate to show his right hand to Seto. He reached out to grab Xisuma's wrist, pulling it closer to him and opening the palms. His own gloved hand was then gently placed on top, and both their hands were then surrounded by a purple aura of what Xisuma knew was the magic given by the Watchers to Seto.

Somewhere deep in Xisuma, he wondered if he felt this magic energy before. 

Seto looked up, glancing from Xisuma's face and to Doc's. "I have to warn you. The universe may not like this." 

"As if that will stop us." 

Doc's comment made Xisuma chuckle but then gasped as his vision suddenly turned dark. 

Before walls upon walls upon walls of ones and zeroes and commands appeared before him in bright, yellow brackets. It passed by so fast but Xisuma managed to catch every single one of them and engrained it into his brain. 

As fast as it happened, it also stopped. Seto stepped back and dropped his hand. 

"You only get one chance in this. I'm not saying it could kill you, but it could kill you."

The soft, joking tone made both the hermits grin, but one look at the book once more made their small moment turn into one of fear. 

The words were rapidly building up. Iris will be dead within minutes.

* * *

The ground shook, preventing Joe from telling others what he knew about Iris. Iskall was pretty sure Cub was going to make some stupid joke about earthquakes, but a black inky vine suddenly emerged from the ground near Wels, causing him to jump out of the way and pull his sword out.

At the sight of the shimmering diamond, the other hermits got their own weapons out with Cub using his own vex magic. 

More vines emerged, rapidly caging them in. 

"Oh no, Stress and Iris!" Mumbo cried. Immediately, everyone has the same goal in mind. 

All five of them scampered towards the door with barely enough time left. Wels, Cub, and Iskall managed to run through the open door before the vines suddenly blocked the way, trapping Mumbo and Joe inside the common room. 

"Mumbo?! Joe?!" 

"GO!" The poet screamed and grunted as he was nearly attacked by a nearby vine. "The vines are after Iris!" There was urgency in his voice just as Mumbo let out a painful scream, his hearts going down to four as numerous vines began to gang upon him. 

The last thing they saw was Joe running to save Mumbo before they continue running down the hallway. 

There were more vines going after them. 

"Cub?! What are you-" 

"Giving you time!" 

Iskall had to drag Wels when Cub suddenly stopped in his tracks, turning to face the vines that were sailing through the air and towards them. There was only one way due to the hallway, and it was very likely Cub will get injured, but as he began to harness his vex magic he found that he did not care. With a yell, he formed a wall and pressed it against the vines, barricading the hallway. His shoes squeaked as he pushed the vines back, more so wincing when he realized some of the vines were smart and simply dug under him. 

It was only some, and he hoped Stress was strong enough to help them. 

Meanwhile, Stress was carrying Iris in her arms as she slammed the door open with her back, suddenly meeting Iskall and Wels outside.

They didn't have time to register the fact that they saw each other when the black vines suddenly sprouted from the ground a few blocks away. Iris whimpered loudly at the sight. 

They ran. No idea where, but they ran. No matter how far they ran, the vines still managed to find them. 

They didn't know how, but they managed to escape the common room to find themselves in what seems to be the aircraft hangar. The open doors tell them that it was raining heavily. 

All of a sudden, Stress dumped Iris onto Wels' hands.

"Wh- Stress?!"

"Keep her safe, Wels. Gotta do some cleaning up."

Wels tried to formulate some kind of protest or response, but the soft whimper coming from the child in his arms prevented him from doing so. Rather, he felt a cold gust of wind and was greatly surprised to see ice beginning to form on Stress' pale skin, the ground around her being covered ina layer of white. 

He didn't get to see Stress in action before Iskall forcibly pushed him to the exit, mumbling some Swedish words under his breath that sounded like swears. 

In the back of his head, Wels wondered if leaving the safety of the hangar would be any better, but with Iris' whimpers, he continued on. Right now, anywhere is better than here. 

Oh, how wrong he was.

* * *

"What exactly have you given him?" Doc hastily asked, realizing quickly that they were running out of time. "And how will this help Iris?" 

"Simple. When Xisuma initiates the command to spawn the child back in, the time within the server will buffer- stop, so to speak. Player entities will still be able to move but besides that everything will stop- and that means the rate of the child's coding being destroyed will also pause. This is just temporary but it will give you more time to recover most of Iris' codes to spawn her back in. If there is anything left to recover."

Seto looked conflicted for a moment, before sighing. 

"There's one last thing I should mention before you go back. There's a reason why the light existed. It acts as a security measure to ensure the child was kept away from Xonne's grasp. Something has to activate the light, which caused the child's demise. I can not reveal the full story, but I know both of you will be smart enough to figure out the rest of it. Once you do, I plead that you do not let your anger blind the bonds you made with your friends." 

Before any of them could ask what he meant by that, Seto had already formed a portal rift made of purple and hints of red wisps. 

"I trust that you know what you must do now." 

Quite frankly, that is a huge responsibility now bestowed upon Xisuma and even Doc's shoulders. Still, even with the stressful situation, Xisuma understood the importance of it. The fate of Iris rests upon their hands, now. 

Seto gave them one last look before forming a portal rift made of purple magic, similar to one of Ty's. 

"Wait," Doc said. "We don't know Iris' real name."

Before Xisuma could begin to panic, Seto placed a hand on his shoulder. "You will. Just keep your eyes on the chat." 

Right, the death message. Xisuma gave Doc a weary look. The other didn't even notice. 

Rather, he stepped through the portal, its purple magic sucking his form in before disappearing into pixels. Xisuma took a deep breath and followed. 

His vision turned black. 

And as the portal closed behind the Hermit, Seto could only look forward with worry creasing his forehead. 

He may never understand Xisuma's motives or intentions, but he knew him as a good man. His... old friend had told him so. Ty had told him so. 

With a wave of a hand, Seto brought the Hermitcraft book in front of him and watched as the page now reached the inevitable.

* * *

No one really knew what happened during that moment. 

Wels was sure he had Iris in his arms with Iskall right beside him.

And for Iskall, he was sure they were still running. 

They were outside, that was one thing they knew. The two could feel the raindrops on their skin, could sense the thunder crackling in the background. Both were on the ground, the knight somehow losing his helmet and when he reached up to touch the side of his head, he found crimson coating his fingers. The blood wasn't on his mind, though. 

Iris.

They were running. One of the vines caught Iskall, forcing Wels to stop which caused another vine to- 

"H...Hnn...nng...?"

Looking up, Wels could only feel the blood drain on his face when he saw Iris just standing a few blocks away. She was hunched over, hands hovering around the ink-black vine that was caked in crimson blood, spreading through the purple sweater she wore. There was blood dribbling down the corner of her mouth, and on her face, she looked... surprised. She didn't seem to be in pain despite her shaking form.

Just as fast as it happened, it also ended. 

The vine forcibly retracted from Iris, and with a shout, Wels managed to push himself off the ground to catch her small form. Iris was breathing quite heavily, showing signs of life but drastically losing it.

"Luv? Iris?!" 

Wels was frozen with shock he didn't feel Stress kneel by his side, already using what he realized was healing magic. The aura surrounded Iris' wound but it didn't seem as if it would heal easily. 

Iris was looking at Wels, but not really _at_ him. She was looking at his hair, and she weakly tried to reach up to touch it. 

There were footsteps around them. 

"IRIS?!"

"NO!!" 

Ren and Grian came running towards them, covered in various wounds and injuries but otherwise still standing. They roughly landed on the wet ground, but neither didn't reach for Iris. It was as if they were too shocked to even process that Iris- their kid, was dying in Wels' arms. 

And they were. Ren was crying, tears pouring down his cheeks he was unable to form coherent words. Grian, on the other hand, was remembering memories he did not want to remember. He had lost too many friends in the past, most of them dying. He didn't think it was going to happen to Iris- he didn't want to _think_ it was going to happen to Iris. 

"S-She can respawn, can't she?" Bdubs weakly asked from somewhere. 

It was at that point that many people suddenly remembered that, they didn't consider if Iris was able to respawn. She could, right? She was a player so she could-

"No. I'm afraid not." The poet solemnly said, a fog over his eyes. "Iris is... not capable of respawning."

"You're not saying that she's-?" 

Whoever was saying that stopped, because realization dawned on every single hermit. 

Iris was going to die. 

"G...r... R...nn..." 

More blood dribbled down Iris' mouth as she tried to speak. Ren sobbed uncontrollably, and with shaky hands managed to hold Iris with the assistance of Wels. 

"It's okay, Iris. You're going to be okay..." Grian leaned near Ren, holding onto Iris' hand tightly. "... You won't have to suffer anymore, okay? We'll take care of the people who allowed this to happen. I promise. J-Just... Just rest, okay?" 

It was a miracle how Grian managed to keep his voice even but inside he was breaking. No, not breaking. _Shattering._ His heart was shattering into a million pieces. All he could think at that moment was why? Why did the universe allow this to happen? To Iris? She didn't deserve this... 

Whoever caused those fucking vines will pay, he swore on it. 

Even if it somehow kills him. He lost too many people in the past and he's going to lose another. He can't just let it slide this time he just-

"I can't... I can't hold it." Stress whimpered, her face pale as she continues to conjure her magic into keeping Iris' wound stable. 

"I suggest stopping before you overwhelm yourself. It is best to... let her rest." Joe said, his voice uncharacteristically even and monotone. Grian couldn't help but feel furious inside.

Ren nodded and gave Iris a little kiss on the forehead. 

Just enough time before Stress stopped her magic. 

Iris disappeared into a puff of smoke, disappearing into the air. The only thing that was left of her place was a paper folded twice. Ren picked it up. 

When Iris died, all their communicators buzzed at the same time. 

**̇/╎⎓⎓ᓭꖌ╎リ↸ was killed by ̇/ᒷᒷ∷ᒷ'ᓭ ᒲᔑ⊣╎ᓵ**

"You knew Iris wouldn't survive," Mumbo said. Everyone's attention was now on Joe, who didn't seem bothered by the many pairs of eyes now focused on him. "You knew that Iris was not a player, but an NPC. You knew all along and..."

"I tried to tell you before..." Joe trailed off and sighed. "I was afraid of what you all would think, knowing Iris' true form. I was scared and now..."

"Iris is _dead_."

Then Grian punched Joe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> since i felt like i havent done justice to this chapter please feel free to ask any questions
> 
> yes, my ask blog is still on hiatus (and also! once i come back to it, there will be some MAJOR changes that i think ya'll would like!)   
> i'm still active message-wise on my tumblr and instagram under the same name as my ao3. if you want to message for whatever reason feel free! Im always open for a distraction! :DD


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter seems a lot shorter I apologize for that. which is why I'm going to post TWO chapters back to back! Enjoy ;)

Time seemed to slow down the moment they heard the painful sound of Grian's fist connecting with Joe's cheek. 

It would have been impressive, seeing Grian punch as if he had done so before, but when it was directed at Joe of all people? They were only surprised.

Two hermits managed to snap out of their trance first. Ren managed to pull Grian back and Cleo caught Joe as he staggered and nearly fell, holding his cheek and staring at Grian with wide, shocked eyes at the knowledge that he was punched by Grian.

Even Grian seemed shocked- or processing through the shock that he had punched Joe. His dark- no, purple eyes were wide and he looked numb as he glanced down at the bruised knuckles- purple and painfully red like Joe's cheek.

And just like that, time caught up to them. 

"What the fuck. What the FUCK?!" Jevin shouted, verbalizing his confused thoughts. "Grian- I-"

"He's just in shock!" Mumbo managed to say, his voice surprisingly calm despite his face telling them otherwise. "Grian didn't mean to hurt Joe-"

"But he still hurt another hermit..." Zedaph mumbled, afraid. 

Cleo glared daggers at the red-sweater hermit but said nothing. It was clear to everyone what her thoughts were towards Grian, but it did not matter. Her concern was of Joe and that bruise of his. Luckily, Cub was by his side and was using a healing spell to help with the bruise. However, he had already used up most of his magic while fighting the vines, so he couldn't do much other than making it numb. 

Somewhere nearby, Stress was rummaging through her inventory to see if she had any spare healing potions for Joe. Iskall was by her side, his eye looking elsewhere but Grian. 

"A kid fucking died, of course, Grian would be heartbroken," False said, glaring at her shoes as she clenched her fists. She looked frustrated. "I consider Iris as my family too... I would've decked someone who could've tried to save her as well."

"Are you justifying him hurting another hermit?!" 

"She's justifying Grian's actions was of grief and not of malicious intent! Do you really think after all this time, Grian would just attack another hermit?!" 

Soon, everyone started arguing. Or at least, that's what Grian thought. It was really only False and Bdubs, of all people, being the most frustrated in this situation and therefore yelling a lot. The others were simply trying to calm them down while battling their own inner doubts as to whether or not Grian was in the clear. 

It didn't matter, Grian realized, whether or not punching Joe was justified. 

Iris will still be dead. 

This argument will only tear the hermits a part. 

It's his fault-

"What the HELL is happening here?!" 

The yelling ceased to a stop once a familiar accent boomed over them. Looking over, they saw Doc, in all his creeper glory, standing there with the most confused, concerned, and even angry look. He didn't seem to change much than the last time they saw him, though he had a few cuts and scratches all over his arms. There was even an elytra that only some of them could sense was enchanted made of... unusual magic. 

Xisuma was nowhere to be seen. 

"This happened. Doc." Scar flatly said, referring to Ren keeping Grian steady and Cleo holding Joe while he was being healed. Doc looked between them, analyzing their current state before his living eye widened. 

"Where's... Where's Iris?" 

The question was left hanging in the air. Doc's breathing quickened. 

"Guys. Where is Iris?!"

"She's dead." Tango managed to say, his red eyes threatening tears. "Killed by the vines..." 

Doc mumbled something under his breath. None of them could understand what he was saying. 

"I'm sorry." 

To everyone's surprise, Joe spoke. His glasses were a bit skewed, and he reached dup to adjust them. Cleo was looking at him wide eyes, unsure as to why he was even apologizing when he was literally decked by Grian moments ago. Joe caught her eye, and gently shook his head side to side, a silent request to not question him. 

"I knew what you and Xisuma were so... worried about. The reason why you left the server to try and find Iris' origins. You knew she was an NPC." 

This time, everyone's attention was on the creeper hybrid, a mix of shock and confusion. Even Grian, who looked so numb, finally lifted his head to glance at Doc with wide eyes. Doc, honestly, was terrified when Joe mentioned Iris being an NPC. Then he realized everyone else already knew that fact only after Iris died. 

"You didn't tell anyone because you were worried. But I found out and... I didn't tell anyone either. I was afraid of what the others would think. I was also unsure of when it was the right time to tell them. If... If I had told them, then perhaps we could've prevented this. We could've saved Iris." 

Grian's mind was only stuck on one thing as Joe continued. The one thing that was igniting the fire inside his body, the one thing that began to flash his eyes purple as his emotions took over him. 

Doc knew. 

Doc fucking knew Iris was an NPC. 

"Grian?" Impulse questioned, worry creasing his eyebrows when he noticed a shadow cast over his eyes, only letting him see the purple flashes which made his skin crawl. The mention of the name caused the others to turn their heads and see Grian slowly losing his composure. 

"Grian, calm down...!" Ren tried to say, squeezing his shoulder, where his hands were. He let out a squeak of surprise when Grian forcibly shoved him away and glared at him. 

"Doc- Doc knew-" 

"I do," Doc said. He winced when Grian sharply turned. "But- Grian, listen to me-" 

It was too late. Grian was already lunging for Doc the same way he did for Joe, only this time he was twice as angry, having the knowledge that Doc knew from the very start and didn't even do anything. Didn't bother to tell anyone that Iris was an NPC. That she couldn't respawn. That she's not a player... 

... That she doesn't have the same consciousness as them. That her naivety, her innocence, it was all scripted. That the relationship they built with the child doesn't mean shit in her eyes. That everything they had together was fake. All the laughs- smiles- memories-

Grian was pulled back by both Ren and Mumbo. He could've easily pushed them away- he was stronger than them, but his grief and sadness and loss took over most of his physical strength. Tears were also pouring down his cheeks. 

"SCREW YOU!" 

The words stung his own heart, but what was there to sting when it was already broken? Doc could've- he could've- they could have done something.

"You don't mean that G." Ren whispered brokenly. 

"JUST LET ME-" 

Everyone went quiet as Grian continued to thrash around aimlessly, his magic pouring out but too emotionally broken to use it properly. 

Somewhere deep inside their minds, they knew Grian just wanted someone to blame for Iris' death. Grian also knew this, but he didn't have the sober thoughts to believe it. 

Doc, unfortunately, have. 

"It wouldn't matter whether or not Grian hurts me. Iris is still dead." Doc said, his voice calm but expression hardened to conceal the sadness in his eye. Most of the hermits looked away, knowing he was right. Iris is still dead and it's tearing them apart. 

"But Iris could've-"

"No. She won't. She's fated to die." Doc interrupted. His choice of words managed to confuse the others, and Doc was then reminded of the fact that the others don't know what he learned. "What do you think I've been doing? I learned that no matter what, Iris will be dead." 

"Don't say that-"

"The light. It acts as a security measure to keep this- this god in Iris' world, from getting to the kid. Do you know why the vines killed Iris? Because the light told it so. It senses danger and therefore did its purpose and..." It was then Doc realized that there was no god in the server. Xeere was nowhere to be found, and based on what the others were saying or implying, a god hadn't been into their server. 

"Who... What happened to the light?" 

No one answered, because Grian suddenly let out a painful cry as he pushed himself off of Ren and collapsed on his knees. His head hung, fingers gripping tightly onto the grass below him as he let out a cry of anguish. 

His entire body glowed purple. 

Ren and Mumbo managed to back away and watched with horrified astonishment as a pair of glowing wings formed on Grian's back slowly as if it hadn't been formed for many years. 

What was peculiar about those wings was that the feathers themselves were fading into transparency near the outer feathers. The wings were of purple color with white stars blinking in and out of them. It grew in size until it was practically bigger than their own elytras. 

The wings were made of magic. It didn't even touch Grian's back- fading into nothing before it reached his sweater, though it was clear he had control over the new limbs anyway. 

It seemed like hearing Doc's question was the final straw to his emotional state, although Doc didn't understand why- 

_The purple magic. The sandy blonde hair. How did he not see this? Grian was-_

Grian took off into the skies, catching everyone off guard. Though, he didn't go that far. In fact, he crashed landed about fifty blocks away before he remained unmoving. 

"Grian!" Doc was the first to move. No-one stopped him- didn't have the time to, before he dashed across the yard and to Grian. 

"Uh! I'll check on them! Just- stay here!" Ren said, giving everyone shaky finger guns before running after them. 

No one knew what to do. 

Xisuma was still nowhere to be found. 

Iskall noticed Wels touching a strand of his hair, almost unconsciously. 

"Shouldn't we go after them? Grian's too emotionally wrecked to control his magic." Scar asked, worry in his voice. "It will overwhelm and..."

"We'll intervene if it gets out of control. Right now, it's a critical time for the three of them to talk and handle their grief together. After all, they did lose a child. Their child." Cub replied back, though he was just as worried as Scar was. 

Everyone remained quiet after that and tried not to look towards where the three hermits were, wanting to give them their privacy but also having to combat their feelings of concern towards the red-sweater hermit. 

They do wonder... where was Xisuma?

* * *

_What is this? Why am I feeling this way?_

_... Script? What script- Stop it! Stop..._

_I'm scared. What is happening?_

_... I don't want to feel this way, please make it stop..._

_How? How can I make it stop?_

_... Anything. I'll do anything._

* * *

Doc doesn't know jackshit about magic for it was never his concern. Not even Ren had any experience with magic. 

So they were pretty clueless as to how they were supposed to help Grian. 

Ren had caught up to Doc who was standing five blocks away from Grian's quivering form, watching with heavy concern as the shorter hermit cried and shook, his purple wings fading in and out of existence, as if the magic was unable to hold its form due to the lack of focus. It was still there, though, which meant that unconsciously, the magic Grian had immediately gone to forming his wings whenever he was in distress. Almost like a protection wall. It was further proved when the wings would try to conceal Grian from the others' view but it wasn't working as efficiently. 

Even if they knew nothing about magic, they at least understood (at least from what the others told them) that magic is linked to one's emotions. It entirely depends and, again, never the concern of Doc. But they understood that Grian was devastated over Iris' death but also unable to comprehend the fact that he was the one that had caused her death. Now he's projecting those thoughts and emotions through his magic.

"G..." Ren took the first step and was surprised that Grian didn't shoot a magic ball at him, so he continued to take cautious steps. Doc watched, a bit worried about Ren's safety, and also worried that if he joined him, it would only get worse. 

Grian's wings fluttered just a tiny bit, responding to Ren's call but continued to cry. His tears had long been finished and the hermit was exhausted, though he continued to avoid eye-contact. 

Ren's ears flattened against his hair, and he couldn't help but walk the rest of the way to drop down by Grian's sides. With slight hesitance, Ren put his arms around Grian, careful to avoid touching the wings. To his relief, Grian didn't resist but instead hugged Ren back, or as much as he could with how he was still positioned. 

"It's all my fault this is my fault I'm so sorry Iris I'm-"

"Hey... It's okay, Grian." Ren said. His words were left ignored as Grian continued to whisper apologies under his breath. "It's going to be okay."

It was clear to anyone that it was not okay. But... maybe it was okay to not be okay. 

"Doc, c'mere." 

Doc, who was occupying himself by staring at his feet, looked up in surprise when Ren called his name. His eye caught Ren looking at him then quickly shifted to Grian, who had peeked an eye out through his bangs. Still glowing purple, but no visible signs of hostility.

After a beat of silence, Doc took a step forward. 

Then the ground shook.

* * *

"Hey... Is it just me or has it always been sunset?" Bdubs asked, staring at the orange and purple sky with confusion. At the mention of the setting sun, most hermits looked up and realized that the sun was still setting, even after all everything that happened. One look at a clock that Zedaph had shown that time had stopped. 

"Wels, you okay?" False asked the knight, who was still numb and holding onto the strand of hair. He softly sighed and let go. He shrugged. 

"Y-Yea, I'm fine. Uh, where's Xisuma?" 

Just as Wels asked that the ground shook below them, catching everyone off guard. The vines that laid stagnant on the ground moments ago were now active again, but instead of attacking them, they began retracting back to the ground, leaving behind numerous holes and more quakes. 

Joe had turned to look at the hanger and saw a brilliant bright light flashed three times, and suddenly knew Xisuma was in the makeshift medic bay thing that Doc and Scar built when it all started. For what, he wasn't sure. The other hermits took no notice of the flashes for they were too occupied with the vines, so with a grudge, he pushed himself off of Cub and ran into the hanger, much to his confusion. 

Cleo noticed this and took no time to follow her friend. Wels, too, noticed Joe's absence and only followed when he saw Cleo disappearing into the hanger. 

Before any of the hermits could question their behavior, there was the sound of the earth cracking below them, followed by a loud, booming disgruntled sound that they had never heard of before. One that they could only describe as downright horrifying. 

In the distance, where Grian, Doc, and Ren were, the black vines suddenly erupt from the ground up and engulfed them into their inky darkness. Seeing this, the hermits began to rush forward with various weapons pulled out to save their friends. They were stopped when several vines suddenly shoot out from the ground, wrapping around some of the hermits into submission.

The rest were able to back up and get away, but hermits like Scar, Bdubs, Jevin, Zedaph and Iskall are now hanging up in the air, wrapped tightly in black vines, unable to do anything. Scar tried to do his magic but with the restrictions, there was not much he could do. Cub shot a ball of magic at one of the vines but it only splashed into sparkles, baffling the scientist. 

And then they watched, with wide bewilderment, as numerous vines began to pile and circle over one another as if making some kind of large ball of blackness. Or perhaps an egg or cocoon. 

The vines soon began to retract, and inside of the darkness revealed a man that towered over all of them, his body littered with scars and wounds that have yet to heal properly. His brown hair barely covered the eyes that were blazing with purple magic and fire, with gold lacing in between. His attire, consisting of robes and sashes were torn in various places and covered in grime, though it was clear that it used to be a grand attire fit for those who were powerful. 

His eyes bore into the hermits, and he began speaking in a language they could not understand.

"Guys, the chat!" Stress quickly said, her eyes looking down on her communicator. 

**< Xonne> So this is the world my brother hid from me?**  
**< Xonne> And you are the inhabitants of this world...**  
**< Xonne> Pathetic. All of you. **  
**< Xonne> Where is she? **  
**< TangoTek> Screw you**

"TANGO?!" They all yelled at the Netherborn, who was glaring at whatever monstrosity of some powerful being in front of them. He was enraged, and the communicator in his hand was close to breaking due to how tight his grip was. 

The being, Xonne, merely laughed at Tango's response. 

**< Xonne> Oh, I will enjoy destroying every single one of you.**

And as a threat, he squeezed the vines that held the hermits. They let out various sounds of pain, and from this, the hermits realized that they are in big trouble without their strongest members. 

Where the hell is Xisuma?!

* * *

The lights flickered on and off in the hallway as three sets of footsteps padded on the floor, sprinting as if their life depends on it. 

The door to Stress' room was half-open, and without missing a beat the poet slammed the door open with his shoulder, only freezing at the doorway due to what he saw inside. 

Xisuma, their admin, was on the ground with a half-cracked helmet. He wasn't moving. 

There was a figure resembling a child on Stress' bed and through the darkness, they could make out long strands of white hair. 

"Xisuma... what the hell did you do?" Cleo gasped out as Joe and Wels rushed to Xisuma's side. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also as a side note, I'm still studying for exams. Life has been hard atm but I'm nearly there! We're nearly close to the end, guys. Hopefully you're still enjoying the story and would stick around to see the ending of it
> 
> ALSO i apologize if my writing doesnt seem good these next few chapters. like i said, life hasn't been easy and i havent written anything proper for nearly a month now
> 
> anyhoo i still hope you enjoy the next two chapters


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes this chapter is still short, heck even shorter than the previous chapter which is why i posted them both back to back

Grian let out a weak whine as he formulated a ball of light with his hands, opening his palms to let it hover above it to light up the tight space between them. They could only see each other and nothing else. It was as if there was a void around them and they are locked in a small space blocked by world borders. Even Grian's wings had disappeared due to the lack of space.

They could barely hear the sound of an upcoming storm behind them. 

"Communicators! We still have them." Ren said, pulling his own communicator out only to grumble when he saw the half-cracked screen. "Damn... how'd it break?" 

"Vines squishing us to near death, probably," Doc mumbled, trying to push his hand against the vines that caused the blackness around them with no luck. 

Grian looked tired as he stared at the light. 

"Grian, how're you feeling?" 

Grian shrugged. "Tired... barely have the energy to do this." He then looked up, as if through the vines. "There's another being with the same magic energy as... as mine." 

"Watcher magic. Xonne is here." Doc said to himself. He pulled out his own communicator, surprised to still see it working, and checked the chat. Sure enough, he saw Xonne talking through the chat. 

"Who the heck is Xonne?" 

"Long story short, the guy is a god in Iris' world and he wants Iris to win a war or something because Iris has this special ability to suck in magic without any repercussions, then shoot that magic out like some kind of missile."

"That's screwed up," Grian commented slowly. 

"Exactly! But his brother, Xeere, sent Iris to our world to protect her from him."

"The light as a security measure... It senses watcher magic. Because it sensed my magic, it thought Xonne was here... Shit." 

Grian curled on himself, shoulders shaking. "Shit... Now he's here to kill us." 

"We could just, well, respawn can we?" Ren asked in a nervous tone when he saw Grian try to make himself look small. 

"Server's too risky. With another NPC joining and what Xisuma is doing-" Doc paused, suddenly remembering the job his admin was doing. "Wait, Xisuma!" 

Xeere's magic to conceal Iris from Xonne must have been a one-time thing. If Xisuma had actually spawned Iris back in, then Xonne must have been able to track her down in some way. This meant that Xisuma had done it and-

The vines around them began to shift, squeezing the three of them together. They all let out various sounds of pain. 

"I'll get us out of here. I just..." Grian began to try and form some kind of magic ball that would help them escape, but the moment he sparked magic, he let out a wince. The ball of light that was giving them the ability to see flickered, and both Doc and Ren looked at each other in worry. 

"Grian, don't. You're only going to hurt yourself. It's not going to be worth it." Doc said evenly, trying to keep his voice levelled to prevent any of his friends from getting too anxious. However, his choice of words must have been chosen poorly, for Grian let out an audible gasp as tears pricked at the corner of his eyes. The light flickered. 

"I... I guess you're right. Not even my magic, no matter how strong, is even worth it to save my friends- save Iris. I'm pathetic. Sam was right..."

Doc didn't know who this 'Sam' person was. This was the first time he heard Grian ever mention anything about his past. Whoever they were, they were apparently a shitty person that caused Grian to believe he's pathetic. Though, he supposed Doc somewhat contributed to that... 

"I'm sorry Grian." Doc finally said. Grian paused and looked up at him. "I should've been there with you and Ren to look after Iris. I didn't get to spend as much time with her like you two did. And I'm... I'm not angry and I don't believe the others are angry, either. About the light thing, I mean. I don't know what's going to happen in the future but we'll all get through it. We're a family- a dysfunctional one at that."

Ren furiously nodded. "Yea, I agree! Iris wouldn't want you to blame yourself no matter whose fault it was. We're all going to be there with one another, alright G? We're gonna beat some god ass and bring justice to Iris!" 

Just as he said that the vines began to squeeze them even tighter. Grian winced, but he gave both of them a teary smile. 

"I... You're right. Both of you. We got to get out of this, though. Any ideas that do not include me getting overwhelmed by magic?" 

Doc, with as much limited space as he has, got his communicator out. "I'll get the others to help us. Don't know how, but as long as they gave us a small opening, then we'll... uh... improvise something."

"Improvisation, huh? Not what I expect from the one Docm77." 

"I'm sorry, who's the one who can't do magic right now?" 

"... Bruh."

* * *

"How's the kid?" Wels asked once Joe came back from visiting Stress' room, where Iris was currently resting. They were in another room, looking after Xisuma who was simply exhausted. 

"She's... quite frankly, stagnant is the only word I could think of to describe the state of Iris." Joe sighed, crossing his arms. "Her body is there for sure, but it's not... well, it's not as if Iris herself is there. I could barely feel a pulse even though I know she's alive. It's hard to explain." 

Cleo grumbled something under her breath as she inspected Xisuma once more. "Hm... But Xisuma managed to spawn her back in. An NPC. It shouldn't be this hard to spawn in an NPC, is it?" 

"Not an NPC like Iris, I reckon." 

Their communicators buzzed, and Joe took the responsibility to check up on the others. 

They knew that some... god-like creature has arrived in their server. They would have gone out to help but Cub had told them to stay and keep their admin safe. Joe didn't get to tell them that Xisuma had spawned Iris back in, though. He wasn't sure how much 'Iris' was there even left. 

"Well, we can't just wait around here! Wels, you have to get out and help them. Our friends are in danger." 

"I'm not leaving you guys defenseless!" 

"You're stronger than all of us!" 

"You have magic, Cleo-"

"It's not as strong as Cub's or Scar's! God fucking dammit Wels-" 

Joe watched as both his friends argue with each other. Though, inside he knew that Cleo was merely frustrated at herself. This argument could have been entirely avoided if Joe was being honest, but with how much stress everyone was under and how little time they have, the pressure was strong. 

He gently pat Xisuma's arm, who softly whined at the touch as he remained on the brink between consciousness and sleep.

* * *

...

...

...

A child stood on her feet. 

She looked around. It was... bright. Very, very, bright. 

_**So, you must be the child they wanted to save.** _

There was suddenly a figure near the child. They were very tall and wore a pretty dress. The dress was as bright as everything else, but nonetheless pretty. She stared at it for a moment before looking up at their face. She saw that their hair was long and pretty as well. 

_**Why thank you. You are pretty too, you know?** _

She was pretty? 

The child looked down at what she was wearing. A simple dress. Not as pretty as the figure in front of her. It was also plain. 

**_Do not look down at yourself like that, dear child._ **

She frowned. 

_**Why don't you speak? Vocalize your thoughts.** _

Speak? Speak... 

"... Not pretty." The child's voice was small, and she finds herself surprised. When was the last time she heard herself speak? 

_**It has been a while since you have spoken a word, hasn't it? You must have a lot of things to say.** _

"Maybe. I dunno." 

The figure merely chuckled and offered the child a hand. 

_**Come, I want to show you something.** _

The child took their hand and walked with them.

_**Do you know who you are?** _

"... No."

_**Do you want to know who you are?** _

"... I dunno."

The figure smiled, though it looked quite sad. The child looked down. She didn't mean to make them sad. 

_**It is alright, my child. In fact, I want to help you know who you are. You are very important to many people.** _

They stopped walking, and suddenly there are multiple moving pictures surrounding them. The child looked up at all of them with wide, grey eyes. It was so... pretty. They made the plain brightness around them prettier. 

**_Why don't we start here?_ **

The figure led the child to a picture. It was quite dark, but the child saw three faces. One with something on his face, resting on his nose. The second one with little triangle things on his head. And the last, who she only recognized the bright light coming from his eyes. 

The child felt happy seeing these faces, though she was not sure why. 

**_Let's continue on._ **

The figure led them to more pictures. She sees a mixture of different faces. Smiling and talking. She recognized some of the words they spoke, she knew the voices as well. Again, she was not sure why. 

Then she saw a picture of a tall creature-like person, giving the child a hug. He was smiling. Then he was walking away with another person wearing something dark on his head and disappeared. 

Then she saw another picture of the one with something on his face and the other with the triangle things. Something was pouring out of their eyes. They were smiling, but it wasn't happy. 

Before the child knew it, she too was crying. 

"I... I..." 

Doc. Grian. Ren. 

The last time she ever saw them. 

"Where am I?" The child asked, whirling around to question the figure. "Why am I here? I wanna go- I want-" She paused. "... I want to go... back."

**_Back to where?_ **

"I... I dunno." 

The figure kneeled down before the child and gently caressed her head lovingly. 

_**Why do you seem confused, child?** _

The child looked back to the pictures and frowned. 

"I have a place... somewhere. It's my home. But I want to go back to them. But it's not my home. But being with them feels like a home... What is home?" 

_**What is a "home"? Is it something physical? Perhaps a house? Or something more metaphorical... Like the people you love.** _

The figure gestured to the pictures all around them. The various faces the child recognized. 

Mumbo. Stress. Iskall. Wels. False. Impulse. Zedaph. Jevin. Tango. TFC. Xisuma. Bdubs. Keralis. Cleo. Joe. Scar. Cub. Doc. Ren. Grian. 

She remembered. Everything. 

"Why am I here then?" The child asked curiously. "I... I died, didn't I?"

_**Yes, and Xisuma spawned you back.** _

"Why?" 

**_Because they love you. Do you love them?_ **

Of course, she loves them. But she wasn't like them, so why?

The figure only smiled. 

**_I believe only they could answer such a question. I saw their love for you. Every single one of them... I also saw how much you love them, too. We are often unkind, but sometimes... we too have a heart._ **

They booped her nose, of which she scrunched up her face. 

**_Now, you have to listen to us. Once you wake up, you will not remember this. And if you do, it would only feel like a dream. But you have to understand... you will face many challenges as you grow older. It could either break you or make you stronger. It could develop relationships or tear them apart. We may not be there to help you... You will become your own person. No script or code to tell you what to do. It is up to you to decide what you want to do now._ **

**_You may not understand this as a child, but in the future, you will. I can promise you that great things will happen. All you have to do... is say your name._ **

**_Now._ **

**_Wake up._ **

* * *

In a dark room only lit by a single torch, was a child that woke up from a dream. 

The dream was hard to remember. 

In fact, it was hard to remember anything. 

However, there was one thing that the child could remember. 

She looked up at the blank sky above her and uttered four words that were caught by the small breeze that carried it up to the universe. 

"My name... is Iris." 

As the universe caught those words, they smiled. And for a brief moment, everything went white. 

**_PLAYER ACCOUNT CREATED_ **

**_WELCOME, 1RIS__ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the universe really did say 'sorry the username Iris is taken'


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guys  
> i did it  
> i actually finished the story  
> will post everything within this week :)

Iris stumbled out of the bed she was laying on. She recognized the sheets- the color was bright and quite girly, the colors that reminded her of Stress. This was Stress' room when she first gained powers- she remembered. Grian said that before. She sat on this bed before. 

The room was neat and tidy but Iris did not care for that moment. Though, it also took her a moment to realize she did not care at all. She has one goal in her mind, which was to find the hermits. It was her own thoughts now. No script or whatever- it's her own thoughts.  
  
Shaking her head to herself, Iris sighed. She's thinking too much. She has to find the hermits. 

She pulled the doors open and looked to her left and right. There are various holes all over the place. She remembered the vines that were chasing them as Stress carried her through the hall. Cub stayed back to slow them down. 

Now, she has to find them. But where? 

Faintly, Iris heard voices.

She didn't think too much about it as she ran as fast as her small legs could carry her across the floor, the voices getting louder and louder. 

She stopped right in front of the door. She would have gone inside straight but remembered something Mumbo said to her before. 

Iris knocked three times. Because that is polite. 

No one answered. 

She also remembered what Bdubs has told her if knocking doesn't work. 

Iris rammed the door with her shoulder. Though the door did not open. However, the voices did stop. From there Iris decided to open the door like a normal person. 

Three faces stared at her with wide eyes as she entered. She recognized Joe, Cleo, and Wels. 

"... WHAT THE F-" 

"WELS!" Cleo shoved Wels' shoulder to stop him from continuing the swear. Iris frowned, knowing that he was about to say a bad word. 

"I can help," Iris said. 

"OH GOD SHE CAN TALK-" 

"Iris, what happened to your hair?" 

Iris held a strand of hair with her fingers, seeing the familiar sight of the bright shade that reminded her of the room she was in when Doc checked up on her. (When was that again?). She didn't know what as wrong with her hair. 

Although, the other three had a clear view of her changed appearance. While most of the color of her hair remained unchanged, they saw the roots of her hair being in a dramatically darker shade than the rest, almost dark brown. Her skin didn't look as pale, either. She looked more healthy. More alive. 

"I dunno," Iris replied after a moment. She then noticed Xisuma's form on the bed and rushed towards him, shaking him by his shoulder. 

"Suma! Suma!" 

"Iris, sweetie, Xisuma is resting..." Cleo said, trying to pry the child off the admin while still processing the fact that Iris is apparently alive and back into the living world despite dying in front of everybody. Didn't they just learn that Iris was an NPC less than an hour ago? 

This must be what Xisuma was doing... 

Iris pouted at Cleo and continued to try and wake Xisuma up. After the third shove, Xisuma's eyes fluttered open. 

His helmet wasn't on, but the tubes that were connected from his nostrils and to the nearby oxygen tank were keeping him alive. When Xisuma woke up, he groaned. 

The child looked happy as the admin woke up and began jumping on her toes. Xisuma blinked and took way longer than he should realize that Iris was tugging on his arm to grab his attention. He let out a small yelp of surprise and jumped back, causing him to wince from the sudden movement. 

"Iris? It worked... Do you remember-"

"Ya! Your name is Xisuma, Cleo, Joe, Wels! I remember!" Admittedly, the child doesn't remember everything. It's still foggy in some parts, but she still remembers the faces of those who helped her be happy in this strange world. But more than that, she still remembers the world she was in before that.  
  
It should have been scary. But for some reason, Iris wasn't scared. No, she was brave. 

"Also! I want to help!"

"Help...?"

"There's a god... thing outside and currently fighting the others," Wels explained. From there, Xisuma widened his eyes and attempted to pull the blankets off of him, though Joe stopped. 

"Xonne! He's here he's-"

"Xisuma, lay your butt down." With the demanding tone from Cleo, Xisuma begrudgingly sat back down. "Alright, listen. The three of us don't know what is going on, but it seems like you know a thing or two. Tell us how we can help and how Iris fits into all of this." 

There was an underlining tone of Cleo telling Xisuma not to leave the bed as well. Not like he can even if he wanted to. He just woke up and his body has not recovered yet. So with a sigh, Xisuma nodded. 

"Right, right... To put it shortly, Xonne is here because he wants Iris. She is the key to defeating his brother which is a whole other story I won't talk about. Anyway, the reason for wanting Iris is because he changed her coding to make her be able to absorb large quantities of magic energy without suffering the repercussions, and apparently direct that energy like some laser beam or something."

"Yea!" Iris innocently agreed. 

"... You're not suggesting to use Iris as a weapon to defeat Xonne, are you?" Joe cautiously asked. 

"It's probably the only chance we got in defeating that thing." Wels frowned. 

Iris looked up at the hermits with a sad look. "No need to be worried. Xonne made me this way, so I can do it! He is very strong and his magic is strong too. But I can combine much magic to be one and stronger than his!" 

She was so determined to help the hermits in any way possible. She had to pay them back after all they've done for her. 

However, the other hermits were worried. Iris just came back and now she's risking her life as if it was nothing. Even worse, she's only eight... Who knows what kind of path would she follow once she grows older. 

"Alright, let's say we do... Allow Iris to help as a human laser beam. Where are we gonna get the magic?" Wels questioned. 

Cleo hummed to herself, thinking, before snapping her fingers as she formulated a plan. "Well, Iris said she can combine much magic. I'm assuming what you meant is the type of magic, yes?"

Iris nodded happily. 

"And that she can absorb large quantities. The largest bet we have is Grian for having large amounts of magic but I doubt it would be enough, so we need the others to help. Stress, Cub, Scar, Tango, and myself. No, I am not going to include Xisuma."

"Will that be enough?" Wels asked worriedly. 

"We don't have any other options, I'm afraid." Joe frowned, before nodding determinedly. "Okay, we're actually doing this. Iris, do you one hundred percent want to help us?" 

Iris nodded once more. 

"In that case. Joe, keep your butt here and look after X. Wels and I are gonna get Iris to the others."

They shared a look and simultaneously nodded. Before they could leave, Xisuma managed to call out. 

"Wait, hold on. Promise you won't let anything happen to Iris." He pleaded. "I... don't exactly know what happened that caused Iris to come back, but I don't want to risk losing her again."

The ground shook once Xisuma finished, causing the lights above them to flicker. 

"Now, go!"

* * *

Outside, it was chaos. 

With Xonne, the server was being infiltrated and changed to how he pleased. It was storming heavily, with the thunder roaring in the wind as if they were having their own battles up in the dark clouds. Lightning strikes down onto the earth, igniting a purple fire that brought a sense of familiarity and deja-vu to the hermits around. 

Many of the hermits that were not subdued by the god-being hid behind various man-made covers, mainly made of building blocks. 

It was somewhat strange to realize that god was clearly in the advantage. He could have easily killed them all if he wanted to, but he hasn't. It was as if he was toying with them. Fit for a god-like him. 

Cub, hidden behind a wall with Mumbo and False, formed what looked like a translucent sawblade in the color of grey with a glowing blue aura. Cub stood up and with a grunt, threw the sawblade as if it was a frisbee and watched as it rapidly flew towards the long vine that had wrapped Scar. 

It slit through the inky vine in a clean-cut, and Scar managed to conjure up his own magic to allow himself to land on a platform, before dropping the remaining three blocks down with minimal damage. 

The saw blade has also cut through Bdubs' vine before it vanished into a spark of magic. Bdubs began to yell and flail around the air before landing on a slime block that Scar had placed just a moment ago. 

Xonne roared in anger, and quickly Scar and Bdubs ender-pearled towards the safety of the hermits. Bdubs hid with Stress while Scar found Impulse and Tango.

**< Xonne> You can't hide forever! **

Various sounds of pain can be heard through the storm. All the hermits gasped as they watched Xonne put the remaining hermits he had in the vines upfront as if presenting them, before squeezing. 

"No!" Stress gasped, tears pricking the corners of her eyes as she saw Iskall's pained expression. "No, stop!" 

"Stress, wait!"

Bdubs shouted as he managed to wrap his arms around Stress and pulling her back to the safety of the wall. "You're going to get yourself killed!" 

Meanwhile, False had enough. With an annoyed grunt, she pulled out her diamond sword and jumped out of her hiding spot, much to the surprise of Cub and Mumbo. And to everyone else's surprise, Keralis had also jumped into the fray, following False and offering her assistance as they fought off the various vines that rose from the ground. 

"How the bloody hell are we going to get them out?!" Mumbo asked himself in horror as he watched his friends get hurt. He knew he wasn't a fighter, so what else can he even offer? Mumbo checked through his inventory and saw his shulker box dedicated to redstone materials. Suddenly, he had an idea. He ran away from the fight, just a few blocks, and began to build upwards using dirt blocks. 

"Get them off me!" Mumbo yelled, of which Cub only managed to hear. He didn't know what his friend was doing, though whatever it was, Impulse was interested and joined Mumbo in building up and making a small-like platform, high enough it was about chest level with the god. Cub didn't know what he meant until a small vine suddenly shoots up from the ground. Quickly, Cub sliced it with his sword.

"Stupid, stupid player codes!" Jevin winced as the vine squeezed him. "Why must the life of a slime hybrid forsaken me!"

"You idiot- You're still a SLIME! BE ONE!" Zedaph yelled, before hissing loudly through the pain. Jevin blinked at the blonde brit before letting his mouth form a small 'o' as he realized he was right. 

Jevin's form began to turn goopy as he forced himself to ignore the coding that allowed him to form his physical self. Fortunately, the vine reacted on feeling the sticky residence as it immediately lets go of him, almost in disgust. 

Zedaph watched with a worried expression as Jevin, quite literally, splat down onto the ground, leaving a mess of blue slime all over the place. And comically, the slime began to slither through the grass and away from the god and to safety.

Scar, closely followed by Tango, have taken into the skies and began to circle the god and shooting either fireball at it or arrows, to conserve their energy. Xonne was greatly displeased by this, especially when an arrow managed to hit one of the vines near his body. 

**< Xonne> You're pathetic! Every last one of you!**

"Gee, salty much?" Impulse commented as he and Mumbo finished constructing an automated arrow dispenser. He was glad to have stored a lava bucket in his inventory, for once he poured the lava in place, Mumbo pulled down the lever. Arrows began to rapidly shoot out of the dispenser and straight to the vines in front of the god- the very vines still holding Zedaph and Iskall hostage. 

The use of fire arrows effectively caused the vines to let go of the remaining hermits- and also cause the god to let out a roar of pain. 

Zedaph managed to, somehow, place a block of hay below him. A few of his hearts were depleted but other than that he was still standing. However, Iskall wasn't so lucky, and landed straight on the ground, losing more than half of his hearts upon impact.

Scar and Tango rushed to distract the god as Zedaph helped Iskall up by wrapping Iskall's arm around his shoulder and half-dragged him to the nearest safety wall.

It was at this point that Wels and Cleo have finally joined them, the former carrying... something wrapped in a blanket as they ran to where Stress was currently trying to heal Iskall.

"Iskall! You okay?!" Wels asked once they reached. 

Iskall winced when he felt Stress apply pressure on his leg. "I'll be fine- stupid, universe physics and health mechanics- what do you have there?"

Wels placed the thing down, and to everyone's shock, ahead with white hair popped out of the blanket. Though, it wasn't fully white seeing as the roots are dark brown. But it was no doubt that this child was-

"IRIS! YOU'RE ALIVE!" Bdubs shouted in glee as he wrapped Iris in a crushing hug. The child winced at the squeeze but smiled anyway as she awkwardly hugged back with her constricting arms. The ones nearby, like Zedaph, Stress, and Iskall

"Is that Iris?!" Mumbo, seeing the whole thing from above, asked with wide eyes. Impulse also stood over, mouth agape. 

Cub was in another protection wall, but he too saw the girl and was shocked. Was this what Xisuma was doing? If so, he's the god damn MVP in this fight. 

"I know how to stop this! I can help!" 

Hearing Iris speaks for the first time left everyone speechless. Bdubs, most of all, until he snapped out of his trance.

"Wait, you can talk?!"

("Bruh..." Stress mumbled to herself)

Cleo nearly had the urge to whack Bdubs on the head but held back. "Yes, and we have a plan. Where's Grian?" 

Bdubs, Stress, Iskall, and Zedaph simultaneously pointed to the direction of the god. When Wels looked over the wall, he saw the large cluster of vines near where the god was, almost forming a cage and where he assumed is Grian.

"Doc and Ren are in there, too," Iskall added with a small wince when Stress started using her magic on his leg. 

"Oh, great. We're going to need him." Cleo sarcastically said. "We need as much magic as we can."

"I have one splash potion of regeneration." Zedaph pulled out the potion. Iskall looked at him incredulously.

"You could have used that on me!"

"No, wait! Save that! We might need it." Cleo interrupted before Zedaph could throw the potion to the ground. 

"Grian?" 

"Yea, kiddo. He's stuck with Doc and Ren." Wels gently pat Iris' head, who looked to be in distress after hearing her father-figures are trapped. "But we can get them out!... Right?"

Iris looked in thought for a moment, until she saw Cub throw a circle disk thing covered in sharp things towards the god, cutting through two vines before disappearing. Cub looked tired and glared as the vines only regrew after being cut. 

False and Keralis are still occupied with the vines on the ground. Scar and Tango are still in the air. 

Suddenly, Iris got an idea. 

"Cub! Cub! Do the thingie again!" Iris said, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify the sound. Cub looked confused, but formed another sawblade anyway and threw it to the vines, cutting two before disappearing into sparks.

"Cleo, I can do that! I need magic!" Iris said, almost excitedly as she tugged on Cleo's arm.   
Cleo looked unsure, and quite frankly a bit lost. Does Iris know how to replicate a saw blade? Cleo has no idea what the kid was planning. 

"Okay... How can we give you magic?"

"Hit me!" 

Stress, Bdubs, and Zedaph let out a shocked 'No!' at Iris' response, but the child was stubborn.

"I'll take the magic in when you hit me! Please!" 

Cleo, quite intimidated by how serious the kid was, decided to form her own magic ball and throw it in Iris' direction. It was used for her armor stands, not meant for fighting. Still, the orange-like ball hit Iris' body, and almost immediately disappeared as Iris quite literally absorbed the magic.

"Not enough, more!" 

"Cub?"

Cub noticed Bdubs calling him and ran over, nearly missing a vine that shoots out. As Impulse shot the vine with his bow, Cub looked over at the others and seemed to understand the plan.

"For the record, I could just let you absorb it, though it might be painful. I don't know how much magic you can take." Cub said with an apologetic look as he began to form his own magic ball, getting larger and larger. Iris only nodded and placed her hands forward, and let Cub place the ball of magic on top of it.

The swirl of magic stayed there for a moment before it began to spread and disappear into Iris' hand. She closed her eyes and seemed to be in deep concentration, before snapping them open as white and purple flames began to fly out.

The other hermits stood back in shock but watched as Iris formed a replica of Cub's sawblade, though instead, it was shimmering in white and purple magic. With a small grunt, she stepped out of the wall and threw the blade across the air.

For her size, the blade shouldn't have gone as far as it did, but it reached the inky cage and cut off the top part in one, clean swipe. 

The vines briefly stayed, before it flopped down and began to disappear into a puff of air. Inside, Grian, Ren, and Doc looked surprised. The shock only lasted as they scrambled to get out of the god's grip as vines began to form below them. Ren was quick to run, dodging, and jumping over vines as he did so. Doc used his sword to cut off any vines near him and followed Ren. Grian, somewhat recovering, used his magic to form wings and fly into the sky.

The sight of the purple wings made Xonne sneer.

**< Xonne> You...! You shouldn't be able to harbor that magic! Who are you?!**

"... The hell is he saying?!" Grian asked the ones below him. Right, he didn't have to see through the dramatic speeches of Xonne in the chat. 

Suddenly, a purple projectile shot out of Xonne's hands and straight to Grian. The hermit dodged the first projectile, though was unaware of the second and ended up getting hit. His wings failed and disappeared, causing him to fall. 

Scar was quick to catch him and glide down to where it was most safe, and for the first time saw Iris.

"Iris?!" Scar asked, surprised as he set Grian down. That was when Ren and Doc joined them and saw the child, too. 

"Hi!" Iris smiled giddily as Ren practically launched himself towards the child, wrapping his arms around her in a tight grip. Similar to Bdubs, in a way, though the hybrid also peppered Iris with kisses on the side of her head. His happiness was clearly shown in the way his tail kept on batting the wet ground.

Doc and Grian (after slowly getting his senses back) were also surprised, but most of all they were full of joy seeing her alive again. Doc thanked Xisuma for bringing her back and for the universe to allow it. 

"How did you-?!"

"I can help!" Iris interrupted Grian with a smile.

Grian looked at the others in question, which Wels began to explain.

"Alright, this may sound weird but Iris can basically absorb magic and use it as a magic lazer kind of thing. Its why Xonne wanted her- to use her, uh, gift to defeat his brother. Now, Xonne is going to have the taste of his medicine."

Ren and Grian looked at Iris in surprise. Doc only nodded. 

"Alright... how much magic?"

"Stronger than Xonne's, that's for sure," Doc replied. "Xonne was already a god in his own world but was given Watcher magic, so that makes him even stronger. Though, Iris can change the type of magic, can you, kid?"

Iris nodded. "Mhm! I just need magic and I can do the rest! I know how!" 

It's quite concerning that the child knew such knowledge, but at this point, they're not even going to ask. 

"Okay... we're actually doing this. Zedaph, get to the sky and distract him. While you're there, get Tango to come down, I'll join you in a bit. Bdubs and Wels, join Keralis and False. Grian, Stress, Cleo, Cub, do what you gotta do for Iris. Ren, stay here and protect Iskall." Doc instructed his voice calm despite the obvious anxiety look on his face. 

Zedaph nodded and was already flying up to the sky, though not before passing Cleo the splash potion of regeneration. Stress placed a hand on Iskall's cheek, of which the swede placed his hand over and gave her a reassuring smile and a nod. Bdubs also left, yelling some cry for war as he raised his sword to the sky and began to slash vines near Keralis.

Ren looked worriedly at Doc and Grian, an indescribable emotion swirling beneath the nervousness. Doc gave Ren a small grin, of which the hybrid returned. Grian also smiled but was lead away by Cub and Cleo as they prepare for what's to come. 

"I don't want to see you gone again, you hear?" Ren said in a teasing tone. Doc only grinned and summoned his trident as he, too, began to fly to the stormy weather. Ren watched him fly before directing his attention to Iskall. 

With Xonne's attention being taken by both the ground and the sky, the magic-users were given time to prepare. Though it wasn't a lot. 

They needed Iris to be about the same level as Xonne, so they used the platform built by Mumbo and Impulse. 

Tango landed on the platform and gave Iris a quick hug. 

"Okay, what are we doing?" 

"Turning Iris into a laser beam of magic energy." Cub replied. "Not everyone has space on top, get down here." 

Tango jumped off, letting Mumbo and Impulse stay on top to protect her. Cleo threw the bottle down, enchanting all of the magic-users besides Xisuma with regeneration. Immediately, they could feel the potion taking effect and their magic energy replenishing. 

"Will this work?" Stress worriedly asked. 

Cleo frowned. "It's the only choice we have."

Grian, with his hands being surrounded with purple magic, said, "Let's do this."

Immediately after that, Grian projected his magic into Iris' body, the child letting out a pained cry at the sudden magic, though both parties remained standing even though Grian internally winced at the sound. Cub and Scar followed suit, their own magic being the color blue-grey as it was also directed at Iris. Cleo, even though her magic isn't as strong as theirs, formed her own magic and projected it into Iris, the color orange contrasting the cool colors of the others. Tango did the same, his magic a blood red.

Stress held back just a tiny bit, not sure if her magic would even be strong, but knew the hermits were depending on her and therefore, used her magic on Iris, the color being an icy blue. 

The hermits were trying to hold onto their magic being projected to Iris, the rain combining the sweat forming on their faces. 

Iris was in agony as she tried to take in the magic being given by the hermits. It would have been easier, she realized, if she had been an NPC. She wouldn't have been able to feel pain because she was simply hollow inside, only meant to take in and give. That was why Xonne wanted her. 

But then she was reminded that she was no longer that girl. She can feel things now, and feelings things make her feel alive, and for the hermits, she endured the pain no matter how much tears poured down her cheeks or how loud her cries became. 

Impulse and Mumbo had to get down from the platform- the magic was too strong and they were afraid of getting hit. However, they were more afraid of the pain Iris must have been going through. 

This was their only choice, wasn't it?

Xonne, finally noticed Iris, and looked happy yet horrified at the sight of the glowing girl and the six colored magic being taken in by Iris. Before he could react, Iris let out a shout, and a white line of blinding magic was projected out of Iris and into Xonne's form. 

The god screamed in pain, and the hermits thought they did it. But then they saw a cruel grin form on Xonne's face. Even though he was indefinite pain, he was smiling maliciously, and almost as if he was taking in the magic Iris was giving him.

Iris saw this and suddenly became scared. 

It wasn't enough! The magic should have destroyed Xonne, but it seemed as if Xonne was taking in the magic like what Iris has done, and using it for himself. If this continues, then Xonne will have too much power, and the hermits will be destroyed. Even worse, Xonne may have the magic to destroy their server to an irreversible state.

Iris tried to stop- to get away, but the magic being projected acted as a link between her and the god. She can't move. 

"It's not working!" Grian managed to say, noticing the effect it's taking on Xonne. "He's just absorbing the magic!" 

"And we're running out!" Stress added, already feeling weak. "This didn't go as planned."

"New plan, then?!" Tango asked. "What else can we even- ha... even do?!"

The magic users tried to scramble for ideas- and fast. Scar let out a gasp. 

"Xonne wants power, doesn't he?! Let's give it to him!" 

It took a moment or more, but the others caught on to what he's saying. 

"We need more but we don't have anymore!" Cleo said. "We need Xisuma!"

"Someone called for an admin?" 

They turned- or tried to, but they heard Xisuma nearby. They all smiled widely, seeing Xisuma being helped by Joe as they trudged towards them. 

Xisuma looked weak, but he has his helmet on. Even just a tiny bit more of magic could allow Xonne to be overwhelmed. Xonne's body wouldn't be able to handle that much magic. 

Xisuma grinned at Cleo as Joe helped him stand between her and Tango. "Not including me to help, eh?"

Cleo rolled her eyes, and even though her exhaustion, she retorted. "Just freaking help us." 

This was the last push they needed. Xisuma created his own magic beam to project to Iris. Though it was definitely much smaller than the others, it was enough magic. 

Iris could barely move at this point, too much magic causing her senses to feel nothing but pain, but she felt it. She felt Xisuma's magic, and with a final yell, gave one last push, and promptly passed out. 

The white beam of energy then disappeared into Xonne. The other seven beams that was projecting into Iris also stopped, and all seven magic-users collapsed on the ground (pulling the poet along). 

Xonne's laughter can be heard as he felt the power coursing through his body. But that laughter slowed until he began to scream in pain, for the same power coursing through his body was too much for him to bear. Too much for him to handle. His body began to crack in numerous places, white glow seeping through them. He screamed and cried, but no one did anything as the white magic succumbed to him, and he disappeared into a blinding light of magical sparks.

(However, there were seven colors that came out of Xonne. It came by so fast, barely anyone noticed. Red came to Ren and entered his body, despite his surprise though he didn't feel anything. The same thing happened to Wels as blue entered his body. Purple came in contact with Grian. Yellow with Doc. Green with Stress. Orange and cyan separated to enter Cleo and Joe respectively. )

For a while, it was just silent as the storm passed now that the god was gone.

Everyone stared at the remaining vines still slowly disappearing into ashes, not knowing what to do. 

"IRIS!" 

They remembered Iris. Grian was first to build up there, but he was too exhausted and collapsed beside her body. She wasn't moving. 

Ren and Doc were quick to follow him. The others remained on the ground, looking up as they overhear them calling her name, asking her to wake up. 

"Iris? Baby girl? Come on, don't do this to me..." Ren wept. It was as if the universe was playing a cruel joke on them. Iris just came back, now she's gone once more. She's not responding to any of their calls, and bit by bit their hope was fading. 

But her body was still here, so that must be good, right? She's just unconscious... Yea, that must be it. 

"Kid?" Doc gently pets her hair, touching the dark roots. "It's over, and it's done. Come on, wake up."

"Iris..." Grian allowed Doc to pull him into a hug, too tired. 

Within the soft sobs, their communicators beeped. 

**[Server resetting in 1 minute]**

"Maybe I could..." Xisuma said to himself, already pulling up his admin panels in front of him and beginning to type furiously, trying to beat the 1-minute time limit. Joe stood by his side, not sure of what he was doing.

"What will happen to Iris?" Impulse asked softly. "Will she still be able to handle...?"

"I don't know, Impy."

They stood there in silence. Some, unsure of what to do. Others, silently praying that some good will come out of it. A few, paying their respects to the child. 

As the numbers ticked down, Ren, Doc, and Grian held their kid close to them, almost in a hug. Almost strangely, this would have been their first family hug. Now, they're not sure if they will have another. 

None were looking at the time, only letting the darkness take them as the server resets.

* * *

When the hermits came to their conscious a minute later, they were back to... minutes before Xonne's arrival. Every hermit was on the Area 77 grounds, including Doc and Xisuma. No sign of exhaustion were seen, no sign of any vines, either. Heck, what was strange is that TFC and Python were with them. 

Cleo and Scar were quick to check on the old man, who seemed to have no idea what had happened for he was busy mining a tunnel. Though, his leg was still injured. 

False and Jevin gave Python a big hug, happy to see him alive and well. Python apparently took a while to respawn, much to the confusion though it did not matter.

What matter was that Doc, Ren and Grian were frantically looking around for the child.

And as the sun begins to slowly set over the horizon now that time had resumed, there was only one thing clear. 

The child was gone.

Bur their sadness did not last, for when they hear the small beep of the communicator once more, Grian was first to check it. His face lit up, and immediately he grabbed both Doc and Ren's hands before disappearing into purple particles, the sound telling them that he had teleported.

No one knew what happened, but they heard Stress squealing and crying happy tears as she held her communicator, and promptly the others followed suit. Their hearts soared at the sight, and many couldn't help but shout in joy at the sight of those words in their chat.

**1ris_ joined the server**

When the child woke up, she found herself on an island of some sort, with a dark structure and her sweater-colored... thing inside a couple of blocks away. She wasn't sure where she was, but she heard the sound of magic nearby and turned to see three men standing there, staring at her with wide eyes.

Before she could react, they all ran towards her.

They hugged.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yknow i nearly wanted to leave u all in a cliffhanger at "The child was gone" but decided, you know what? they deserve to be happy. let them have it
> 
> i suddenly felt rEALLY motivated to finish this story and i managed to do it in one sitting! though just a heads up, the next two chapters will be shorter
> 
> also i really hope i pulled through with the 'final battle' scene since im not one for writing final battles and stuff


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okokok im just trying to tie up a bit of loose ends and also preparing for the next part. so it'll be short- shorter than the epilogue, surprisingly. we'll see

It was a day after everything happened. They all decided to rest before visiting Iris in Grian's futuristic base. 

"We thought you died! Again!" Bdubs said, hugging Iris once more. Iris was now used to Bdubs' hugs and hugged back. 

"Don't do that again, sweets." Keralis smiled, patting her head. Iris grinned. When she heard Doc calling her name, she waved goodbye and ran over to her father figures and Xisuma. 

There was a bit of an informal celebration going on in the base, using the only floor that was pretty empty. All of them had talked to Iris and was now relaxing after all that had happened during the past couple of days or so. 

"Do that again!" Iskall said excitedly, almost like a child in a candy store. Stress giggled and created a miniature snowman made of her own magic, causing Iskall to let out a gasp and excited squeal at the sight. Mumbo was nearby and was impressed by the use of magic. 

Iris passed by False and Wels, who are talking about something about weapons and fighting. Iris waved at them, and they waved back. 

She passed by the majority of the hermits and even gave a hug to TFC, wishing him good health as his leg apparently had permanent damage that caused him to use a walking stick, which was fine by him. 

When Iris reached them, they lead her to the balcony of the building (which... is really just Grian breaking the window so they could talk privately outside). Iris had both Ren and Doc's hands on either side. She was jumping as they walked out to the fresh air coming from the late mornings of their world. 

"Okay, Iris?" Xisuma called, causing Iris to feel some sort of dread in her body. Xisuma noticed, and immediately shook his head. "No, you are not in trouble. We just want to talk to you about something important." 

Iris looked at Grian, Ren, and Doc. Seeing their reassuring faces, she nodded. 

"We are aware that you are now your own person. By right, we do not own you. We are giving you the choice to make your own path." Xisuma began, trying his best to use as simple phrases as he can. Iris didn't really understand, though. 

"Um... we talked about it. Your fathers and I, and we decided that we will care for you until you want to leave when you're older." 

Iris... didn't understand. Why would she want to leave?

"But... Why?"

"It would seem as if we're controlling you." Doc shrugged. "We didn't want that. All this time, you never had a choice to make. The war happening in your world and Xonne turning you as a weapon was against your choice. Coming to our world was against your choice, as well. So we figured that if you wanted, we would let you choose whether or not you want to stay with us or-"

"I want to stay!" 

Iris ran to Ren and hugged him, holding him tightly as tears pricked the corners of her eyes. 

"I want to stay! That's my choice!"

"Iris-"

"This is my home, now. I want this to be my home. I want my home to be with you." 

Ren couldn't handle it anymore and burst into tears as he hugged his kid back. "Oh, thank goodness! I wouldn't be able to sleep knowing you would leave!" 

Grian and Doc watched, semi-amused and semi-happy as Ren picked Iris up and hoisted her on his shoulders. 

"We'll take care of you, Iris. We'll be the best family you'll ever have!" 

Iris laughed. Even though there were tears trailing her cheeks, she wiped them away and smiled. The thought of the hermits being her family didn't sound bad. Rather, it was the best thing in the entire universe. 

Xisuma sighed in relief and watched as Ren ran back into the cylinder base, yelling about how Iris is part of the family now, with Grian closely following behind.

Doc walked up to Xisuma and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I think you should take that nap now, Xisuma."

The admin raised a questioning eyebrow at Doc's comment. "... I slept last night?"

"For like six. You deserve at most four more hours."

"Doc... that isn't a nap."

"Sleeping during the daytime is considered a nap in my book."

"... You know what? That sounds pretty nice right now."

They laughed. Though, before they go back inside, Doc passed Xisuma a dark purple letter with wax sealing it in place, the Watcher symbol greeting him.

"Got a letter this morning. Seto wants to talk to you, apparently."

* * *

The night cycles were fixed. Everyone departed to their respective places to rest while Ren, Doc, and Iris remained in Grian's futuristic megabase.

At the moment their housing arrangements have to be discussed, but for now, they are content with just sleeping in the same bedroom. Ren and Iris were already sound asleep on the bed, though when Doc left the bathroom after taking a brief shower, he realized Grian was nowhere to be found. 

He finds himself walking to the kitchen, where he saw Grian leaning over a counter with a cup of tea on his hand. His hair was slightly flattened from the shower he had thirty minutes ago and was wearing his sleeping attire. He only looked up when Doc coughed to grab his attention. 

"Mind if I get a cup?" Doc asked. 

Grian chuckled a bit and prepared another cup for Doc. Doc settled himself to lean against the counter and gratefully accepted the tea from Grian. The cup was warm, telling him that the tea has been sitting there for a while. 

"After everything that happened, I expected you to flop down in bed in exhaustion like what Ren did."

Grian shrugged at that, taking a sip of his own cup. He glanced at Doc, then down to his chest. "When did you start to wear shirts?" 

"Since the kid came. And you're avoiding the question." 

Grian shrugged once more. "I was just thinking. The light reacted to my magic... which is the same magic Xonne had. And you know the light reacts to Xonne's magic." He turned to face Doc, a conflicted and cautious look on his face.

"While you were out there, how much did you know?" 

Doc stared at him. For a minute straight, they did not speak. With a sigh, Doc took a small sip and placed his cup down, his fingers drumming against the edge of the counter. He hoped it would calm his nerves now that the truth will be revealed. 

"I... Do you know someone named Seto?" 

At that, Grian widened his eyes before frowning. "So you've met him? I don't know him personally but..." He paused. "What did he tell you?"

"Enough," Doc said. "Like how the Watchers gave you and your friend magic. And after your friend disappeared, you became angry and ran away. And how those very same Watchers were the reason why Xonne and his brother had magic in the first place, and why this mess began." 

Grian was... shocked. But he also seemed to accept that fact. His hands trembled a bit, and Doc gently pried the cup away from his hands to place on the counter. "Grian, you didn't start this. It's not your fault."

"But I had a part in it," Grian argued, his voice soft and defeated. Almost small, like how he's feeling. "If I hadn't left-"

"You wouldn't be here with us. Iris wouldn't be here with us." Doc interjected. Grian was silent before a small sob was pulled out from him. Doc placed a hand over his shoulders and allowed Grian to hide his face against his chest, sobbing quietly and holding on to the hybrid. 

Doc only rubbed his back in comfort. 

Once Grian had calmed down, he pulled away and wiped his face clear of tears, having to take off his glasses while doing so. "Even after all this time, I thought the Watchers would leave me be."

"They are... somewhat. I don't think they know you're here, though, so you don't have to worry about that." Doc said reassuringly. "Besides, I could probably beat their asses."

"No, you can't," Grian said in a teasing tone. 

Doc smirked. "Wanna bet?" 

They stared at each other for a moment and looked away. The air between them suddenly became... more intimate, for some reason. Doc didn't know why, he could feel his face turning hot. Just slightly.

Just as fast as it happened, it ended. Grian smiled at him. "Thanks, Doc. For telling me. Who else knows about this?"

"Xisuma and I." Doc replied, trying to figure out the confusing details of what happened moments ago. 

Grian nodded. "Alright. I think we should go to bed." 

Doc remained where he was as Grian grabbed their cups to dunk the liquid down the sink.

"You coming?"

Doc snapped out of his thoughts and nodded. 

"Yea, yea I am."

* * *

Seto closed the heavy book with a thud and allowed the magic to place it back into the shelf.

"Xonne and Xeere's story has finally reached their ending, albeit bittersweet."

Xisuma let out a small 'hm' at that. "The people? And Xeere?"

"The god disappeared, as far as I'm aware. The people? Unknown fates. Likely died from on-going war or starvation. Nevertheless, they will eventually perish. It's fortunate the child had escaped."

Seto turned back to Xisuma and together they began to walk through the aisle.

"Why do you want to talk to me?" Xisuma asked. "The letter... it said that in the future we might need your assistance and gave me a key." 

"The child is a unique... player." Seto slowly explained, though the way he said it, it was as if he too did not know the true reasonining for his actions. "I believe that in the future, a dark force will come to our universe. Iris is a special child, but I am afraid that her being 'special' may be the cause of many destructions. Whether it happens to your hermits, the universe, or herself. I do not know exactly. And the fact I do not know makes me fearful for her future. So if it seems as if the situation calls for my assistance, then the key will create a portal to The Archives. My role here in The Archives may be small, but it can help knowing the past.

He stopped walking. Xisuma stopped, too.

"The universe will be keeping an extra eye on Iris. Call it a hunch, dear friend, but I have a bad feeling that what transpired to make Iris a player can cause serious consequences in the future."

The warning made Xisuma worried, but Seto shook his head to himself a moment later, clearing the negative thougths from his head.

"No, I am probably exaggerating. Just look after the child, Xisuma. That's all I ask."

Xisuma didn't know what to say, except for a very small promise that the universe heard.

"I will."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im leaving all the sappy stuff for the epilogue  
> not a lot for the second to last chapter but i still hope you like it :) also, some plans will be said as well! its gonna be a long ending note lmao


	30. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WE RE HERE WERE FINALLY HERE OHMYGOD BAUDOWLBVIFOQDALOASKL  
> FLUFF AND A T O U C H OF ANGST HERE WE COME

Everyone was busy.

Though, they weren't busy with their own projects. It was the weekend, and they decide to indulge themselves in various hobbies and activities to finally relax after the hectic events that happened. Many hermits were spending the time together, others alone. They could have used that time to work on their megaprojects more, to have one less block to finish. They have the skills, the materials, and certainly the time.

So yes, everyone is always busy, but this time, they're busy making memories with others.

Everyone, especially a few.

* * *

When Iskall found Stress, she was playing with the dogs. The sun was high in the sky, though it did not stop the chills entering Iskall's body as he walked up to her.

"Iskall! How are you?" Stress happily greeted as she threw a dog toy, watching the dogs race against each other to reach it first. She laughed to herself and noticed Iskall looking nervous and fidgety. "Iskall?"

"Are you free tonight?" Iskall blurted out, his cheeks turning red. Stress saw the reddening cheeks and worried that the cold was getting to him.

"Er, not really. Do you need something?"

"A date!" Iskall squeaked, his voice going two octaves higher than usual. Stress blinked, processing the words.

Iskall face turned into a tomato as he waited for Stress to reply.

"Iskall... Are you asking me on a date?"

It was nearly impossible for Iskall's face to turn any redder than it already is. Even worse when Stress started giggling.

"Oh me goodness- Iskall! Of course!"

She jumped into his arms, and Iskall grinned widely. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to ask you, Stress!"

"Aw, really? And all it took was me nearly dying and a child to ask me out, eh?" Stress giggled and kissed his cheek. Iskall nearly passed out from all the blood rushing into his face.

* * *

Joe watched as Cleo worked on her armor stands. Her orange magic dancing across the wooden frames as she changed their positions.

"Cleo, may I confess?"

Cleo hummed in reply, too focused on her work to fully pay attention. Joe felt a bit nervous, but he let out a small cough to clear his throat.

"I... fancy you."

The zombie hybrid stopped and looked at Joe. They stared at each other. Then Cleo grinned.

"Cool. When's our date?"

"Wait- just like that?"

She finally stopped her work and placed the wooden limbs down. She walked over to Joe, who was sitting on a chair and writing some poetry. She leaned over, placing a hand on the back of the chair, almost cornering Joe as their eyes are now on the same level. Emerald looking at the ocean. Joe gulped, and Cleo saw his adam's apple bobbing.

"You actually think I've been blind to the possibility of us being together?" Cleo asked, almost teasingly.

Joe stuttered. "I- I do not, actually. I very much think it has been obvious we both have some mutual feelings for a while. I just think after the event of Iris' arrival, it would seem fitting that we act on our feelings and finally... uh... date?"

The fact Joe was trying to be wordy made Cleo laugh. She finally lets go of him and turned back to her work, walking away as if she did not just tease Joe like that.

"Hope you don't mind me wearing a suit on our first date, then."

If the imagery of Cleo in a suit made Joe's cheeks burn, then Cleo did not have to know that.

* * *

"This is the most cursed thing I have ever seen." Impulse flatly said, seeing Jevin contained in a glass box the size of a regular box. Zedaph smiled innocently, holding the box and showing it to the redstoner. "I- Is Jevin even alive?"

"Heck yea!" Jevin replied, voice slightly muted due to being behind glass. His eyes were there, he could see them, but his mouth was nowhere to be found. The eyes are staring at Impulse.

"... I'm going back to the hippie commune."

"Wait, no! We haven't hung out in so long! IMPULSE!"

* * *

Xisuma walked with TFC through the shopping district, having a peaceful time with the old man and also having a small chat. Their walk was slower as TFC's leg struggle to keep up, even with a walking stick supporting him.

"I think we need to get that checked in the hub," Xisuma worriedly said when he saw TFC wince when he applied pressure on his leg. "It's not healing, even with respawn."

"Eh, I'll be fine. This is just the old getting to me." TFC replied.

"But, you _are_ old."

"Hardy-har. Hypocrite."

The admin glared at the hermit, but they dissolved into soft laughter in the end.

* * *

False let out a long whistle, seeing the arrow fly through the air and land right on the target. She applauded the wide-eyed builder, genuinely impressed at his marksman skills. "Didn't know you're good with the bow, man. Why don't you do it more often?"

Keralis grinned and put the bow away. "Hm... not really my style. Fighting, I mean."

Bdubs snickered from beside him. "You would rather use guns, Keralis."

"Oh shush, sweetcheeks."

As the builders banter with each other, False was left to wonder... and said out loud, "What are guns?"

* * *

"Python? Where are you going?"

The hybrid paused, his finger hovering above the button that would make him leave the server. He turned and saw Tango standing there with a worried expression.

"Python?"

"I just need a break... somewhere," Python said with a smile, trying to sound reassuring. "It has been terribly hectic this past couple of days, I kind of need a moment for myself, if you get what I mean."

Tango looked worried. "Alright... I'm not going to stop you but- are you okay? You said you had trouble respawning ever since..."

"I am fine. I will be. I'll... be back." Python sighed, giving up slightly. "And I suppose it has something to do with that, as well."

Tango nodded, understanding.

He then stepped forward and gave the creeper hybrid a hug. Python hugged back, the universal tab fading.

* * *

Wels sat on his bed, looking through the contents of his precious box. It was tucked away into his universal inventory, but he figured it was time to revisit old memories, for old times sake.

He ruffled through the small box a bit, before picking up an old photo from his homeworld. He smiled, seeing the faces of his friends. All of them were pointing their swords upwards, a permanent cheer on the paper.

The knight was also there, smiling and having his sword up as well. At the time, it felt as if they had the whole world in their hands, and they can do anything.

He smiled, sadly. "I wish you all were still with me. You would love Iris."

He then put the photo back and closed the lid.

* * *

Cub and Scar were holding onto either side of Iris' hands. They lifted her up at the same time, allowing Iris to squeal and smile as she was 'flying'. They walked through Hermitville after having a check-up (and admittedly, also being her babysitters for the hour). Iris seemed to be fine around Cub and Scar, even after finding them dangerous the first time they met.

"Hello!"

Grian swooped down from the sky, his purple wings shimmering against the afternoon sun. Cub whistled, impressed.

"No need for an elytra? Now you're just showing off."

"Hey, I'm already showing off with an awesome kid." Grian laughed as Iris ran towards him and hugged him. "So, the check-up?"

"Healthy and energetic. Also, ten full hearts. Iris really is a player now." Scar said with a smile, almost tearing up. "You have fun now. Tell Ren and Doc I said hi!"

"We will!" Iris replied giddily. Before Cub and Scar could leave, Grian hoisted Iris up into his arms and began flying into the air. The sound of Iris screaming in excitement can really be heard.

"Show-off," Mumbo commented, holding a shulker box as he passed by Cub and Scar. The sudden appearance of the mustache man-made Scar screamed in terror, causing Mumbo to scream back.

* * *

Ren and Doc were sitting down on a picnic mat. The dog hybrid was teaching Doc how to make flower crowns, who seemed to be struggling just a tiny bit.

"Come on, Doc! You can throw a trident but can't make a flower crown?"

"Screw you, hippies." Doc groaned, giving up as he dropped the messy crown onto the mat. Ren laughed and put his crown on top of his head. He picked up his guitar, just as they began to hear the flapping of wings. Looking up, they see Grian coming over with the kid in his arms.

Once they landed, Iris ran over to Doc and gave him a hug. The impact caused Doc to fall onto his back with an 'Oof'.

"Hallo!"

"Hey, kid." Doc easily pushed the child off of him in a playful manner. Iris just smiled and began jumping in excitement when she found a book with a ribbon taped on the side. It was a storybook! Similar to the one Mumbo read to her that one time.

"Gift from Xisuma," Ren explained as he strummed his guitar. Grian chuckled. He picked up the flower crown from Ren's head and placed it on top of Iris, though she was too pre-occupied reading the book, the ribbon discarded at the side.

Grian sat down on the picnic mat. The newfound family enjoyed the peaceful moment between them, with the sound of Ren playing a song and Iris flipping the pages, it seemed as if nothing else mattered except for now. To them, this is what home feels like.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, sappy stuff incoming
> 
> THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE SUPPORT GIVEN TO THIS STORY!!! I really did not believe that i would finish this, considering my track record. bUT HERE WE ARE FELLAS!! 
> 
> On October 2020, after writing 30 chapters worth 120,000 words, we have reached over 10000+ hits and 420+ kudos! i really did not think i would reach that goal but it happened because of you all supporting this. whether it'll be through commenting, screaming me at my tumblr or just reading this. i can not thank you enough how much joy i have being a part of this community and having the chance to write a story for you all 
> 
> I started this book on 18 March 2020, seven months ago. It was on a whim and I wondered if I would even finish this. Younger me would have been so surprised haha
> 
> And even though this story is ending, im not planning on leaving iris like this. she has a lot to learn, and frankly theres still a lot i want to explore and write about. so expect a sequel soon! not sure the actual date for the release of the sequel, so while waiting why not check my socials?
> 
> I do art so check me out in Ig: @/zacizach  
> And if you want to see some updates about the upcoming arcs, then check out my tumblr!... under the same username  
> And the askblog! at this point it has been changed to iris-askblog. its still on hiatus but i'll be posting there very soon! in a couple of weeks, give or take 
> 
> okay, uh, thats all. you can leave now. ty again. okay bye


End file.
